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Urban green areas can have a high impact on soil fauna due the environmental changes caused by human activities. This work aimed to assess earthworm populations in urban sites in the city of Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil. Earthworms were sampled in two urban sites: the Campus Ecoville of the Universidade Positivo and the Casa Verde space and in two land use systems (Grass Lawn and Native Vegetation), in the summer of 2018 and 2019 and winter of 2019. A total of 1052 individuals were found, belonging to five families and 12 species were identified, of which five are native: Glossoscolex sp.55, Fimoscolex sp.36, Fimoscolex sp.37 (Glossoscolecidae), Andiorrhinus duseni (Rhinodrilidae) and Ocnerodrilidae sp.43 (Ocnerodrilidae) and seven are exotic species: Amynthas corticis, Amynthas morrisi, Metaphire californica, Metaphire schmardae (Megascolecidae), Dendrodrilus rubidus (Lumbricidae) and Pontoscolex corethrurus (Rhinodrilidae). Of the five native species found, four are new species and will be described in the future and the specie A. duseni belongs to the group known as giant earthworms (minhocuçu) with specimens larger than 30cm. Despite the predominance of exotic species (n=932) compared to native species (n=114), the presence of new species may indicate that the managed environments can preserve native species. Moreover, the difference in the total number (native vs. exotic) can be attributed to the ability of the exotic species to survive human disturbances.

The area destined for agricultural production in Paraná state in Brazil is ~6 million hectares, of which 79% are under no-tillage systems (NTS) that can positively affect earthworm populations. Furthermore, earthworm abundance and richness can be valuable soil quality. This study assessed earthworm communities in long-term no-tillage sites (NTS) and nearby secondary Atlantic Forest (SF) fragments. Sampling was performed in June 2018 and May 2019 using the quantitative Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility handsorting method (ISO-TSBF), complemented by qualitative sampling in three municipalities: Faxinal, Mauá da Serra and Palmeira, in NTS and SF. Eleven earthworm species, belonging to five families (Benhamiidae, Glossoscolecidae, Megascolecidae, Ocnerodrilidae, and Rhinodrilidae) were found along with seven native species (Glossoscolex sp.22, Glossoscolex sp.23, Fimoscolex sp.21, Fimoscolex sp.24, Fimoscolex sp.42, Andiorrhinus duseni and Urobenus brasiliensis) and four exotic or cosmopolitan species (Dichogaster gracilis, Amynthas gracilis, Metaphire californica and Pontoscolex corethrurus). The cosmopolitan P. corethrurus dominated Faxinal and Mauá da Serra, while in Palmeira Fimoscolex and Glossoscolex were the most abundant. Six species belonging to Glossoscolex and Fimoscolex were new to science and must be described. Overall, 239 individuals were found. In 2018 126 individuals were found (76 in NTS and 50 in SF) and in 2019, only 112 individuals were found (45 in NTS and 67 in SF). The highest earthworm abundance was in Faxinal (123 individuals), with 76 individuals in NTS and 47 in SF. In Mauá da Serra the same pattern was observed (SF>NTS), while in Palmeira in overall, fewer individuals (38) were collected (24 in NTS and 14 in SF). The NTS at Faxinal and SF Mauá da Serra in 2019 had only/more exotic/cosmopolitan species, while at the other dates and sites >50% of the specimens sampled were native species. Overall, forests had more native species than exotics: in 2018, natives represented > 75% of all specimens, but in 2019 both Faxinal and Mauá da Serra had more exotic species (> 65%), while at Palmeira, they represented 50% of the individuals. Earthworm total biomass for forest sites was higher in Faxinal (3.2 g) and NTS in Mauá da Serra (1.7 g) in 2019. Overall, the total biomass was higher in SF sites than NTS. Using a classification available for earthworm populations in no-tillage systems, all three sites were considered to have poor quality in terms of abundance (ind m-2), while for species richness, they were considered to have moderate (Faxinal and Mauá da Serra) and good quality (Palmeira).

We describe three new species of Eukerria, six of Kerriona, one of Ocnerodrilus and two of Belladrilus (Clitellata: Ocnerodrilidae) from Brazil, mostly from wet habitats including bromeliad leaf axils, plus some from forest soils in Bahia state. We also provide new morphological and distribution data on Kerriona luederwaldti Michaelsen, 1924. We describe the new genus Pauqueba and its two new species, both from bromeliad leaf axils and forest floor litter in the state of Bahia. It has two pairs of calciferous glands, the balantine reduction of the male terminalia but spermathecae in ix, and no gizzard. The new genus Parabauba found in deeper (30 cm) soil layers is distinctive for the combination of two pairs of calciferous glands, a large gizzard in v, acanthodriline male terminalia, and no typholosole. The new genus Diplomoela from a mesic soil in Bahia is meronephric, unusually large for the Ocnerodrilidae, and has two well-developed gizzards.

In the current paper we present an updated checklist of all the megadrile earthworms (Crassiclitellata: Annelida) in the world, and notes on the distribution of families worldwide. Biogeographic responses to geological phenomena including plate tectonics, as well as to past and present climate and habitat distributions, are the main factors determining the present distribution of earthworm families. A total of ca. 5,738 species/subspecies (5,406 species and 332 unique subspecies; i.e., not counting the nomino-typical subspecies) belonging to 23 families (including one non-crassiclitellate family: Moniligastridae) are currently recognized worldwide, of which three families (Tritogeniidae and Kazimierzidae from Southern Africa and Arecoidae, a new family from Brazil described herein), 35 genera and close to 1200 new taxa (including subspecies) were described in the 21st century. Nonetheless, the large number of still undescribed species will likely increase this value to well over 8,000 species. Ten families are monospecific and/or monogeneric and have a mostly restricted distribution. On the other hand, more than 87 widespread cosmopolitan species have been catalogued, some of them with important invasive potential, belonging mainly to families Lumbricidae, Acanthodrilidae, Benhamiidae, Megascolecidae, Rhinodrilidae and Ocnerodrilidae. Taxonomic housekeeping was performed for the preoccupied Rhinodrilidae genus Tairona Righi – herein substituted by Taironina nom. nov., and Guarani camaqua Rodríguez & Lima was reinstated and removed from synonymy with Criodrilus lacuum Hoffmeister, 1845, resulting in a wider definition of the Almidae family. Furthermore, Amynthas maximalis nom. nov. is proposed herein as a substitution name for the preoccupied name Amynthas maximus Qiu & Dong, 2019, and Arecoidae is proposed herein as a new monotypic family for the aquamegadrile species Areco reco Righi, Ayres & Bittencourt, 1978.

No-tillage (NT) is a soil conservation management practice that can sustain important earthworm populations due the maintenance of soil cover and absence of soil disturbance. Sites with NT can also support native earthworm species, but few studies have identified the earthworms collected under NT. Therefore, the present study evaluated earthworm diversity in 14 sites under NT and seven with riparian forest (RF) in Atlantic Forest located in Rolândia, Cambé, Toledo (Paraná), Coxilha, Sarandi (Rio Grande do Sul) and Itaí (São Paulo). The earthworms were collected by handsorting using quantitative and qualitative methods. The 1471 individuals collected were classified into 23 species belonging to five families: Glossoscolex sp.71, sp.72, sp.73 and sp.74, Fimoscolex sp.23 sp.24 and sp.25 (Glossoscolecidae); Pontoscolex corethrurus, Urobenus brasiliensis (Rhinodrilidae); Haplodrilus sp.1 and sp.2, Ocnerodrilidae sp.1, sp.15, sp.16, sp.48, sp.49 and sp.50 (Ocnerodrilidae); Amynthas gracilis, Metaphire californica (Megascolecidae); Dichogaster affinis, D. gracilis, D. bolaui and D. saliens (Benhamiidae). Of the total, 15 were native and eight were exotic species. In general NT sites had higher species richness than the forest sites (except at Itaí), mainly due to the invasion of NT fields by exotic species, particularly Ocnerodrilidae sp.1 and Dichogaster spp. Six of the seven forests had native species, but only four NT fields had native earthworms, and these were generally found in low abundance.

Context Soil structural quality (Sq) influences soil water dynamics, greenhouse gas emissions and plant productivity in natural and agricultural environments. Hence, assessing soil structural quality using simple methods is crucial to identifying potential impacts of different land uses. Aims Identify correlations between Sq and macroinvertebrate communities in seven land use systems (LUS). Methods Seven LUS were studied: native mixed ombrophylous forest (NF), native grassland (NG), native grass pasture (NP), Eucalyptus sp. plantation (EP, 20-years-old), no-tillage annual cropping (NT), integrated crop–livestock (ICL) and crop–livestock–forestry (ICLF). Each LUS had three plots and Sq and macrofauna community were evaluated. Sq was assessed through visual evaluation of soil structure (VESS) – a Sq score was assigned to each identified layer. Soil macrofauna were hand-sorted from each of these layers. Soil samples were taken in each LUS to describe selected chemical and physical attributes related to soil quality. Results All LUS had non-degraded soil structure quality (Sq ≤ 3); however, with differences in Sq among LUS mainly in deeper layers. The VESS showed better Sq in NF (1.53) and NP (1.85) compared to the other LUS, with highest Sq scores for ICL and NG. The NP had the largest macrofauna communities (12 183 ind. m−2), comprising mainly termites and earthworms, with taxa richness highest in NF. Conclusions Correlations between soil macrofauna (i.e. total density, termites and other groups) and Sq were observed, demonstrating that larger macrofauna populations were associated with better soil structural quality. Implications Biological indicators, like soil macrofauna, can be easily measured at low cost and linked to visual Sq, facilitating simultaneous assessment of soil physical and biological health.

The invasion of jumping worms, a small group of pheretimoid earthworm species from Asia, has increasingly become an ecological, environmental and conservation issue in forest ecosystems and urban-suburban landscapes around the world. Their presence is often noticed due to their high abundance, distinctive “jumping” behavior, and prominent granular casts on the soil surface. Although they are known to affect soil carbon dynamics and nutrient availability, no single paper has summarized their profound impacts on soil biodiversity, plant community, and animals of all trophic groups that rely on soil and the leaf litter layer for habitat, food, and shelter. In this study, we summarize the biology, invasion, and ecological impacts of invasive jumping worms across North America. We highlight potential impacts of this second wave of earthworm invasion, contrast them with the preceding European earthworm invasion in temperate forests in North America, and identify annual life cycle, reproductive and cocoon survival strategies, casting behavior and co-invasion dynamics as the key factors that contribute to their successful invasion and distinct ecological impacts. We then suggest potential management and control strategies for practitioners and policy makers, underscore the importance of coordinated community science projects in tracking the spread, and identify knowledge gaps that need to be addressed to understand and control the invasion.

International audience; Amazonian rainforests, once thought to be pristine wilderness, are increasingly known to have been widely inhabited, modified, and managed prior to European arrival, by human populations with diverse cultural backgrounds. Amazonian Dark Earths (ADEs) are fertile soils found throughout the Amazon Basin, created by pre-Columbian societies with sedentary habits. Much is known about the chemistry of these soils, yet their zoology has been neglected. Hence, we characterized soil fertility, macroinvertebrate communities, and their activity at nine archeological sites in three Amazonian regions in ADEs and adjacent reference soils under native forest (young and old) and agricultural systems. We found 673 morphospecies and, despite similar richness in ADEs (385 spp.) and reference soils (399 spp.), we identified a tenacious pre-Columbian footprint, with 49% of morphospecies found exclusively in ADEs. Termite and total macroinvertebrate abundance were higher in reference soils, while soil fertility and macroinvertebrate activity were higher in the ADEs, and associated with larger earthworm quantities and biomass. We show that ADE habitats have a unique pool of species, but that modern land use of ADEs decreases their populations, diversity, and contributions to soil functioning. These findings support the idea that humans created and sustained high-fertility ecosystems that persist today, altering biodiversity patterns in Amazonia.

With the growing global concern on pesticide management, the relationship between its environmental recalcitrance, food security and human health has never been more relevant. Pesticides residues are known to cause significant environmental contamination. Here, we present a case study on long-term no-tillage farming systems in Brazil, where Glyphosate (GLY) has been applied for more than 35 years. GLY and its main breakdown product, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) were determined in topsoil (0–10 cm) samples from no-tillage fields and nearby subtropical secondary forests by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a fluorescence detector. In addition, the presence of carbamates, organochlorines, organophosphates and triazines were also screened for. GLY and AMPA were present in all soil samples, reaching values higher than those described for soils so far in the literature. A significant decrease for AMPA was observed only between the secondary forest and the farm’s middle slope for site B. GLY and AMPA were observed respectively at peak concentrations of 66.38 and 26.03 mg/kg soil. GLY was strongly associated with forest soil properties, while AMPA associated more with no-tillage soil properties. Soil texture was a significant factor contributing to discrimination of the results as clay and sand contents affect GLY and AMPA retention in soils. This was the first study to report DDT and metabolites in consolidated no-tillage soils in Brazil (a pesticide fully banned since 2009). Based on human risk assessment conducted herein and the potential risk of GLY to local soil communities, this study offers a baseline for future studies on potential adverse effects on soil biota, and mechanistic studies. Made available in DSpace on 2021-05-11T15:31:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva-Brown-etal-2021-article-Scientific-Reports.pdf: 1607820 bytes, checksum: cb964e5188232ffe395597376eab01c7 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2021

Made available in DSpace on 2021-06-25T15:03:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2021-04-22 Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Fundo Estadual de Recursos Hidricos Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Bananas and plantains are major commodity/food crops that represent an important habitat for earthworms, although so far, no review is available on earthworm communities associated with banana/plantain crops worldwide. The Vale do Ribeira region is among the largest banana producing areas in Brazil, but little is known of the earthworms living there. Hence, the present study assessed earthworm populations and species in three banana plantations and adjacent Atlantic forest fragments along the Ribeira de Iguape River using standard (hand sorting) methodologies. Furthermore, we review earthworm populations reported in banana/plantain plantations worldwide. Only two species (Pontoscolex corethrurus, Amynthas gracilis) belonging to two families (Rhinodrilidae, Megascolecidae) were found in the Ribeira River valley, occurring concurrently. Abundance was low (< 13 indiv. m(-2)) compared with other banana plantations worldwide, that frequently surpassed 100 indiv. m(-2). More than 70 studies reported earthworms from >200 banana plantations in 28 countries, and mean species richness was 2.7 per site, ranging from 1 to 10 species. Exotics predominated in most sites and P. corethrurus was the most prevalent species encountered. Overall, more than 104 species from 10 families were reported, with around 61 native and 43 exotic widespread species, mainly of the Megascolecidae, Lumbricidae and Acanthodrilidae families. Richness was highest in India (27 spp.) and the Canary Islands (25 spp.), but native species dominated only in a few countries and sites, while exotics were prevalent especially in island countries and Brazil. Lower-input practices appear to be important for earthworm communities and banana plantations can have large earthworm populations in some cases, which may be contributing to soil processes and plant production, topics that deserve further attention. However, many important banana-producing countries have not yet been evaluated, so further work is warranted, both in terms of applied ecology and biodiversity. Univ Fed Parana, Rua Funcionarios 1540, BR-80035050 Curitiba, PR, Brazil Univ Estadual Paulista, Av Nelson Brihi Badur 430, BR-11900000 Registro, SP, Brazil Univ Coimbra, P-3000456 Coimbra, Portugal Embrapa Forestry, Estr Ribeira,Km 111, BR-83411000 Colombo, PR, Brazil Univ Estadual Paulista, Av Nelson Brihi Badur 430, BR-11900000 Registro, SP, Brazil Fundo Estadual de Recursos Hidricos: FEHIDRO 102/2016 CNPq: 441930/2020-4 CNPq: 310690/2017-0

Greenhouse gas emissions (CO2, N2O, CH4) and chemical, physical and microbiological properties (pH, macro and micronutrients, texture, moisture, exchangeable NH4+, NO3−, total C and N, organic C, microbial biomass C and metabolic coefficient) were monitored in casts of a large, endogeic native Brazilian earthworm species Rhinodrilus alatus and from non-ingested control soil incubated for up to 32 days. Earthworm casts represented a significantly different chemical and microbiological environment, with higher soil moisture, pH, H + Al, exchangeable NH4, Cu, Fe and Mn contents, lower microbial biomass C and higher metabolic quotient (qCO2), but with few differences in CO2, N2O and CH4 emissions compared with non-ingested control soil. Nonetheless, fermenting, methanogenic and nitrate-reducing microbes encountered ideal conditions for sustained anaerobic activity in the clayey, dense and moist castings of R. alatus, maintaining emission of N2O and CH4 and confirming previous results observed using gut contents. The high exchangeable NH4 and H2O contents influenced the oxy-reduction processes, affected GHG emissions and N transformations and modified soil microbial biomass and activity. In addition, selective ingestion concentrates C and N contents in the casts and transformation processes affect the availability of important plant nutrients, topics that deserve further attention, considering the widespread collection of this species for use as fish-bait in Brazil.

Earthworm populations have been little studied in forest systems in South America, and the choice of appropriate sampling methods is an important factor to consider. Hence, the present study evaluated earthworm populations using two methods: handsorting of large soil monoliths (40 × 40 cm × 20 cm depth), and application of formalin (0.5%) to the soil surface. Worms were sampled in fifteen areas at the Embrapa Forestry Research Station, including native Atlantic forest fragments, and native (Araucaria angustifolia) or exotic (Pinus elliottii) tree species plantations. Eight species of earthworms were collected overall, including four native species (Urobenus brasiliensis, Andiorrhinus duseni, Fimoscolex nivae and Glossoscolex embrapaensis) and one exotic (M. schmardae) in low abundance, and three other exotics in higher abundance (Pontoscolex corethrurus, Amynthas gracilis and Amynthas corticis). Total earthworm density ranged from 11.5 to 102 individuals m−2 and biomass from 5.6 to 31.6 g m−2, with higher values being found in P. elliottii plantations. Handsorting was more effective than formalin for sampling earthworms, resulting in higher species richness, overall abundance and biomass (particularly of the endogeic P. corethrurus) in both Pine and Araucaria plantations. Formalin extraction was better for extracting epi-endogeic species (particularly M. schmardae). Eveness and A. corticis densities were higher in native forests, while A. gracilis abundance was higher in Araucaria plantations and P. corethrurus predominated in both plantations, likely due to soil-related differences between the vegetation types. Earthworm population assessments in Brazilian forest systems should prioritize handsorting, while biodiversity inventories may benefit from combining handsorting with formalin extraction.

James et al . claim that there are areas of concern in our work. We believe that they have misunderstood the methods behind our paper and that differences in scale have been overlooked. Once those misunderstandings have been resolved, their remaining criticisms are either not sustained or agree with our statements. To advance the field, we recommend additional sampling using comparable methodologies in underrepresented areas.

With the growing global concern on pesticide management, the relationship between its environmental recalcitrance, food security and human health has never been more relevant. Pesticides residues are known to cause significant environmental contamination. The present study focused on long-term no-tillage farming systems and subtropical forests in Brazil, where Glyphosate (GLY) has been applied for more than 35 years. GLY and the main breakdown product of glyphosate, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a fluorescence detector. In addition, the presence of carbamates, organochlorines, organophosphates and triazines were also detected. GLY and AMPA were omnipresent in soil samples, reaching values higher than those described for soils previously in the literature. GLY and AMPA were observed respectively at peak concentrations of 66.38 and 26.03 mg/kg soil. GLY was strongly associated with forest soil properties, while AMPA associated with no-tillage soil properties. The texture was a significant factor that contributed to the maximum discrimination of the results since clay and sand contents influence GLY and AMPA retention in soils. This was the first study to report DDT and metabolites in consolidated no-tillage soils in Brazil (a pesticide fully banned 2009). Based on human risk assessment and the potential risk of GLY to local soil communities, this study offers a baseline for future studies that will be crucial to understand the toxicity mechanisms on non-target soil biota.

Earthworms are often related to fertile soils and are also frequently used as environmental quality indicators. However, to optimize their use as bioindicators, earthworm populations must be evaluated together with the environmental and anthropogenic variables regulating their communities. This review sought to identify the earthworm-sampling, soil chemical and physical, and environmental and anthropogenic attributes evaluated in 124 published studies that quantified earthworm abundance (>7,300 samples) in 765 sites with different types of climate, soils, land use, and management systems in Brazil. Soil chemical and physical attributes (except pH) were less reported (≤50% of studies) than other environmental variables such as sampling date, altitude, temperature, precipitation, climate and soil type, and land use (>50% of studies). Earthworms were rarely identified (24%) and few studies (31%) measured their biomass, although most provided adequate information on sampling protocol. Based on their importance in regulating earthworm populations, a set of variables is proposed to be evaluated when studying earthworm communities and other macrofauna groups. This should help guide future studies on earthworms in Brazil and other countries, optimize data collection and replicability, allow comparisons between different studies, and promote the use of earthworms as soil quality bioindicators. Resumo: As minhocas são frequentemente relacionadas a solos férteis e, também, bastante usadas como indicadores da qualidade ambiental. No entanto, para otimizar seu uso como bioindicadores, as populações de minhocas devem ser avaliadas juntamente com as variáveis ambientais e antropogênicas que regulam as suas comunidades. Esta revisão buscou identificar os atributos relacionados à amostragem de minhocas, físicos e químicos dos solos, e ambientais e antropogênicos avaliados em 124 estudos publicados que quantificaram a abundância de minhocas (>7.300 amostras) em 765 locais com diferentes tipos de clima, solos, uso da terra e sistemas de manejo no Brasil. Os atributos químicos e físicos do solo (exceto pH) foram menos relatados (≤50% dos estudos) do que outras variáveis ambientais, como data de coleta, altitude, temperatura, precipitação, tipo de solo e de clima, e uso do solo (>50% dos estudos). As minhocas foram raramente identificadas (24%) e poucos estudos (31%) mediram sua biomassa, embora a maioria tenha fornecido informações adequadas sobre o protocolo de amostragem. Com base na sua importância para a regulação das populações de minhocas, propõe-se um conjunto de variáveis que devem ser avaliadas no estudo de comunidades de minhocas e outros grupos da macrofauna do solo. Isso deve ajudar a guiar futuros estudos sobre minhocas no Brasil e em outros países, otimizar a coleta e a replicabilidade de dados, permitir comparações entre diferentes estudos e promover o uso de minhocas como bioindicadores da qualidade do solo.

International audience; Pontoscolex corethrurus is a well-known invasive earthworm in tropical zone which is believed to have originated from the Guayana Shield in South America and was described as parthenogenetic. A recent phylogenetic study revealed four cryptic species in the P. corethrurus complex (L1, L2, L3 and L4), among them L1 was particularly widespread and was proposed as P. corethrurus sensu stricto. Here, our aims were to investigate the genetic variation of P. corethrurus L1 in its presumed native and introduced ranges and to examine its reproductive strategy. An extensive dataset of 478 cytochrome oxidase I gene (COI) sequences, obtained in specimens sampled all around the world, revealed a weak COI haplotype diversity with one major haplotype (H1) present in 76% of the specimens. Analyses of the genetic variation of 12 L1 populations were done using both nuclear (226 AFLP profiles) and mitochondrial (269 COI sequences) genetic information. The high AFLP genotype diversity at the worldwide scale and the fact that no genotype was shared among populations, allowed to reject the ‘super-clone’ invasion hypothesis. Moreover, a similar level of mean genetic diversity indices were observed between the introduced and native ranges, a pattern explained by a history of multiple introductions of specimens from different parts of the world. At last, occurrence of identical AFLPs genotypes (i.e. clones) in several population confirmed asexual reproduction, but recombination was also revealed by gametic equilibrium analysis in some populations suggesting that P. corethrurus L1 may have a mixed reproductive strategy.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of different farm systems on clay dispersion and its relationship with soil chemical properties and the no-tillage system participatory quality index (IQP), in watershed areas in the west of the state of Paraná, Brazil. The farm systems evaluated were: no-tillage; no-tillage with crop succession; no-tillage with soil disturbance; and conventional system. In addition, the farm systems were evaluated for their IQP. Soil samples were collected at 0.0-0.20-m soil depth, in 40 agricultural areas and in 6 native forests considered as references. The degree of clay dispersion, total organic carbon, pH (CaCl2), exchangeable potassium (K+), available phosphorus (P), exchangeable calcium and magnesium (Ca2++Mg2+), and potential acidity (H+Al3+) were determined. A linear multiple regression model was fitted by the method of least squares. The averages of clay dispersion degree per watershed were compared at 5% probability. The farm systems were compared by Scott-Knott’s test. Soil chemical properties showed a higher influence on clay dispersion than the different farm systems assessed. The no-tillage system alone showed the highest content of organic carbon, which was similar to those of the native areas. The conventional system and the no-tillage system with soil disturbance showed a lower IQP and a higher degree of clay dispersion than the areas with the no-tillage system alone. The IQP allows distinguishing the conventional system from the no-tillage system.

Several studies have characterized and delimited subterranean ant assemblages. Soil extraction, one of the methods employed to access this fauna, employs the removal of monoliths. One of the most widely used methods for the extraction of soil sampling is called TSBF (developed by the Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Programme). This method provides relevant data about the species associated with the soil. In the present study we characterized assemblages of subterranean ants using the TSBF method in different subtropical areas of the Neotropics. We considered two sampling designs in different localities. The first design resulted in 315 TSBF samples obtained from layers at distinct depths. The second design resulted in 270 TSBF samples and 270 epigaeic pitfall trap samples. This material was used to delimit the species that occur exclusively in the subterranean stratum (TSBF) and that are not found on the soil surface. A total of 281 species were recorded. Of these, 57 can be considered subterranean, based on their occurrence in subterranean strata. We also verified that the highest occurrence of ants was in the first 10 cm of soil depth. Due to the importance of using methods that efficiently extract the subterranean ant fauna in studies, we suggest the TSBF method should be used to sample ants or to associate this method with epigaeic pitfall traps to delimit strictly subterranean assemblages in specific community stratification studies. Resumo: Vários estudos têm caracterizado e delimitado assembleias de formigas subterrâneas. A extração de solo, um dos métodos utilizados para amostragem dessa fala, implica na remoção de monólitos. Um dos métodos mais utilizados na extração de monólitos é chamado TSBF (desenvolvido pelo Programa Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility). Esse método fornece dados extremamente relevantes sobre as espécies associadas ao solo. No presente estudo, nós caracterizamos as assembleias de formigas subterrâneas usando o método TSBF em diferentes áreas subtropicais do Neotrópico. Utilizamos dois delineamentos amostrais distintos. O primeiro delineamento resultou em 315 amostras de TSBF obtidas a partir da estratificação do solo. O segundo resultou em 270 amostras de TSBF mais 270 provenientes de armadilhas pitfall epigeicas. Esse material foi utilizado para delimitar espécies que ocorrem exclusivamente no estrato subterrâneo (TSBF) e não são encontradas na superfície do solo. Registramos um total de 281 espécies. Destas, 57 podem ser consideradas subterrâneas (baseado na ocorrência no respectivo estrato). Também verificamos que a maior ocorrência de formigas se deu nos primeiros 10 cm de profundidade. Devido à importância do uso de métodos que coletem eficientemente formigas subterrâneas, sugerimos o uso do método TSBF em estudos de estratificação de comunidades ou sua associação a armadilhas do tipo pitfall epigeica para delimitar assembleias estritamente subterrâneas.

Assessing how much management of agricultural landscapes, in addition to protected areas, can offset biodiversity erosion in the tropics is a central issue for conservation that still requires cross-taxonomic and landscape-scale studies. We measured the effects of Amazonia deforestation and subsequent land-use intensification in 6 agricultural areas (landscape scale), where we sampled plants and 4 animal groups (birds, earthworms, fruit flies, and moths). We assessed land-use intensification with a synthetic index based on landscape metrics (total area and relative percentages of land uses, edge density, mean patch density and diversity, and fractal structures at 5 dates from 1990 to 2007). Species richness decreased consistently as agricultural intensification increased despite slight differences in the responses of sampled groups. Globally, in moderately deforested landscapes species richness was relatively stable, and there was a clear threshold in biodiversity loss midway along the intensification gradient, mainly linked to a drop in forest cover and quality. Our results suggest anthropogenic landscapes with high-quality forest covering >40 % of the surface area may prevent biodiversity loss in Amazonia.

Amazonian Dark Earths (ADEs) are highly fertile soils in areas with predominance of unfertile soils. However, the variation in nutrient availability between regions and the resilience of ADEs to modern agricultural use is still little known, particularly regarding micronutrient contents. Hence, the present study synthesized current information of ADE impacts on extractable micronutrient (Cu, Ni, Fe, Mn, Zn, B) contents at different soil depths and assessed in detail the role of both soil depth and land-use type on extractable Cu, Ni, Fe, Mn and Zn in nine ADEs and adjacent (ADJ) soils from different Amazonian regions. The land-use systems chosen were secondary old (OF) or young (YF) forests, and agricultural systems (AS) in Iranduba, Belterra and Porto Velho. Only eight studies compared extractable (Mehlich-1) micronutrient contents at 21 sites with ADEs and ADJ soils, but only four studies included depths greater than 30 cm, and B and Ni were evaluated in only one study. Higher Mn and Zn, but lower Fe contents were found in ADEs both from literature data and in the present study, especially in the first 30 cm depth. Increases in extractable Ni and Cu in ADEs varied according to the site and the land use considered. Micronutrient contents tended to decrease with depth, but varied depending on the element, site, soil type and land use. Sites with modern agriculture showed few differences in extractable micronutrient contents, except for a decrease in Fe in Belterra and Mn in Porto Velho. Considering the high amounts of some micro- and macronutrients in ADEs further work is warranted concerning soil management and nutrient balance in plants grown on these soils.

Gas Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS) has been used for a long time in fingerprint analysis. We present a workflow of univariate statistical treatment of compound by considering their type of response variables. Two data sources were used: (i) comparative data from two Brazilian Amazon soils, and (ii) the Nitrogen-dose response experiment involving two Ilex paraguariensis clones. During type of response variables selection, the following assumptions were tested: normality and homogeneity of variances. After defining a strategy to select the type of response variables, the compounds were classified according to the statistical test that must be used to evaluate them: analysis of variance (ANOVA, LM), generalized linear model (GLM), and a non-parametric (NP) test. The developed workflow allows individual compound and class comparisons, and a couple examples that illustrate a wider range of similar datasets are open to the readers to test either their own data or ours.

Soil organisms, including earthworms, are a key component of terrestrial ecosystems. However, little is known about their diversity, their distribution, and the threats affecting them. We compiled a global dataset of sampled earthworm communities from 6928 sites in 57 countries as a basis for predicting patterns in earthworm diversity, abundance, and biomass. We found that local species richness and abundance typically peaked at higher latitudes, displaying patterns opposite to those observed in aboveground organisms. However, high species dissimilarity across tropical locations may cause diversity across the entirety of the tropics to be higher than elsewhere. Climate variables were found to be more important in shaping earthworm communities than soil properties or habitat cover. These findings suggest that climate change may have serious implications for earthworm communities and for the functions they provide., 677232 to N.E.). K.S.R. and W.H.v.d.P. were supported by ERC-ADV grant 323020 to W.H.v.d.P. Also supported by iDiv (DFG FZT118) Flexpool proposal 34600850 (C.A.G. and N.E.); the Academy of Finland (285882) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (postdoctoral fellowship and RGPIN-2019-05758) (E.K.C.); DOB Ecology (T.W.C., J.v.d.H., and D.R.); ERC-AdG 694368 (M.R.); and the TULIP Laboratory of Excellence (ANR-10-LABX-41) (M.L.). In addition, data collection was funded by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (12-04-01538-a, 12-04-01734-a, 14-44-03666-r_center_a, 15-29-02724-ofi_m, 16-04-01878-a 19-05-00245); Tarbiat Modares University; Aurora Organic Dairy; UGC(NERO) (F. 1-6/Acctt./NERO/2007-08/1485); Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (RGPIN-2017-05391); Slovak Research and Development Agency (APVV-0098-12); Science for Global Development through Wageningen University; Norman Borlaug LEAP Programme and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); São Paulo Research Foundation - FAPESP (12/22510-8); Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station; INIA - Spanish Agency (SUM 2006-00012-00-0); Royal Canadian Geographical Society; Environmental Protection Agency (Ireland) (2005-S-LS-8); University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (HAW01127H; HAW01123M); European Union FP7 (FunDivEurope, 265171); U.S. Department of the Navy, Commander Pacific Fleet (W9126G-13-2-0047); Science and Engineering Research Board (SB/SO/AS-030/2013) Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi, India; Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) of the U.S. Department of Defense (RC-1542); Maranhão State Research Foundation (FAPEMA); Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES); Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic (LTT17033); Colorado Wheat Research Foundation; Zone Atelier Alpes, French National Research Agency (ANR-11-BSV7-020-01, ANR-09-STRA-02-01, ANR 06 BIODIV 009-01); Austrian Science Fund (P16027, T441); Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank Frankfurt am Main; Welsh Government and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (Project Ref. A AAB 62 03 qA731606); SÉPAQ; Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland; Science Foundation Ireland (EEB0061); University of Toronto (Faculty of Forestry); National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada; Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Reserve; NKU College of Arts and Sciences Grant; Österreichische Forschungsförderungsgesellschaft (837393 and 837426); Mountain Agriculture Research Unit of the University of Innsbruck; Higher Education Commission of Pakistan; Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi, Kerala; UNEP/GEF/TSBF-CIAT Project on Conservation and Sustainable Management of Belowground Biodiversity; Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland; Complutense University of Madrid/European Union FP7 project BioBio (FPU UCM 613520); GRDC; AWI; LWRRDC; DRDC; CONICET (National Scientific and Technical Research Council) and FONCyT (National Agency of Scientific and Technological Promotion) (PICT, PAE, PIP), Universidad Nacional de Luján y FONCyT [PICT 2293 (2006)], Fonds de recherche sur la nature et les technologies du Québec (131894), Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft [SCHR1000/3-1, SCHR1000/6-1, 6-2 (FOR 1598), WO 670/7-1, WO 670/7-2, and SCHA 1719/1-2], CONACYT (FONDOS MIXTOS TABASCO/PROYECTO11316); NSF (DGE-0549245, DGE-0549245, DEB-BE-0909452, NSF1241932); Institute for Environmental Science and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago; Dean’s Scholar Program at UIC; Garden Club of America Zone VI Fellowship in Urban Forestry from the Casey Tree Endowment Fund; J. E. Weaver Competitive Grant from the Nebraska Chapter of The Nature Conservancy; the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at DePaul University; Elmore Hadley Award for Research in Ecology and Evolution from the UIC Dept. of Biological Sciences; Spanish CICYT (AMB96-1161; REN2000-0783/GLO; REN2003-05553/GLO; REN2003-03989/GLO; CGL2007-60661/BOS); Yokohama National University; MEXT KAKENHI (25220104); Japan Society for the Promotion of Science KAKENHI (25281053, 17KT0074, 25252026); ADEME (0775C0035); Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities of Spain (CGL2017-86926-P); Syngenta Philippines; UPSTREAM; LTSER (Val Mazia/Matschertal); Marie Sklodowska Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship (747607); National Science and Technology Base Resource Survey Project of China (2018FY100306); McKnight Foundation (14-168); Program of Fundamental Researches of Presidium of Russian Academy of Sciences (AAAA-A18-118021490070-5); Brazilian National Council of Research CNPq; and French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs. Author contributions: H.R.P.P. led the analysis, data curation, and writing of the original manuscript draft. C.A.G. assisted in analyses and writing of the original manuscript draft. E.K.C. and N.E. revised subsequent manuscript drafts. J.v.d.H., D.R., and T.W.C. provided additional analyses. E.K.C., N.E., and M.P.T. acquired funding for the project. J.K., K.B.G., B.S., M.L.C.B., M.J.I.B., and G.B. contributed to data curation. H.R.P.P., C.A.G., M.L.C.B., M.J.I.B., G.B., O.F., A.O., E.M.B., J.B., U.B., T.D., F.T.d.V., B.K.-R., M.L., J.M., C.M., W.H.v.d.P., K.S.R., M.C.R., D.R., M.R., M.P.T., D.H.W., D.A.W., E.K.C., and N.E. contributed to the project conceptualization. All authors reviewed and edited the final draft manuscript. The majority of the authors provided data for the analyses. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. Data and materials availability: Data and analysis code are available on the iDiv Data repository (DOI: 10.25829/idiv.1804-5-2593) and GitHub (https://github.com/helenphillips/GlobalEWDiversity; DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.3386456).

Prof. Pietro Omodeo (University of Siena, Italy), the world-renowned earthworm taxonomist and evolutionary biologist, was born in Cefalù, Sicily, Italy on the 27th September, 1919. He celebrates his 100th birthday in 2019 and members of the international community of earthworm taxonomists salute him with Petroscolex centenarius gen. et sp. nov., a new megadrile taxon discovered in 1991 by him but which has not been formally described until now. The many important contributions of Omodeo to oligochaetological research are briefly mentioned.

Amazonian rainforests once thought to hold an innate pristine wilderness, are increasingly known to have been densely inhabited by populations showing a diverse and complex cultural background prior to European arrival. To what extent these societies impacted their landscape is unclear. Amazonian Dark Earths (ADEs) are fertile soils found throughout the Amazon Basin, created by pre-Columbian societies as a result of more sedentary habits. Much is known of the chemistry of these soils, yet their zoology, have been neglected. Hence, we characterised soil macroinvertebrate communities and activity in these soils at nine archaeological sites in three Amazonian regions. We found 667 morphospecies and a tenacious pre-Columbian footprint, with 43% of species found exclusively in ADEs. The soil biological activity is higher in the ADEs when compared to adjacent reference soils, and it is associated with higher biomass and richness of organisms known to engineer the ecosystem. We show that these habits have a unique pool of species, however, the contemporary land-use in ADEs drives nutrient decay and threats biodiversity. These findings support the idea that Humans have built and sustained a contrasting high fertile system that persisted until our days and irreversibly altered the biodiversity patterns in Amazonia.

International audience; Following many decades of work on the taxonomy, biology and ecology of the globally-distributed tropical earthworm Pontoscolex corethrurus (Muller, 1857), morphological and molecular data have shown that the stability and effectiveness of nomenclature depends on the designation of a neotype from the type locality. We do that, with all the required justifications, and provide sufficient information to permit the correct identification of this species.

Soil is one of the most biodiverse terrestrial habitats. Yet, we lack an integrative conceptual framework for understanding the patterns and mechanisms driving soil biodiversity. One of the underlying reasons for our poor understanding of soil biodiversity patterns relates to whether key biodiversity theories (historically developed for aboveground and aquatic organisms) are applicable to patterns of soil biodiversity. Here, we present a systematic literature review to investigate whether and how key biodiversity theories (species-energy relationship, theory of island biogeography, metacommunity theory, niche theory and neutral theory) can explain observed patterns of soil biodiversity. We then discuss two spatial compartments nested within soil at which biodiversity theories can be applied to acknowledge the scale-dependent nature of soil biodiversity. Published version M.P.T. acknowledges funding from the GermanResearch Foundation (DFG, TH 2307/1-1). H.R.P.P.was supported by the sDiv (DFG FZT 118). M.L.was supported by the TULIP Laboratory of Excellence(ANR-10-LABX-41). M.C.R. and W.H.V.d.P. acknowledgesupport from ERC Advanced Grants [grant number:ERC-ADV 694368 and ERC-ADV 323020 (SPECIALS),respectively]. F.T.D.V. is supported by a BBSRC DavidPhillips Fellowship (BB/L02456X/1). N.E. and O.F.acknowledge funding by the European Research Council(ERC Starting Grant 677232, ECOWORM). C.A.G. issupported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 researchand innovation programme under grant agreement No641762-ECOPOTENTIAL. E.K.C. acknowledges fundingfrom the Academy of Finland (285882) and the NaturalSciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada(postdoctoral fellowship 471903 and RGPIN-2019-05758).

The role of earthworms as one of the most important groups of ecosystem engineers in human-modified and natural environments has been increasingly recognized only during the last 30 years, yet earthworms and humans have been acting together in building landscapes for millennia. This relationship is well represented in the pre-Columbian raised fields, in flood-prone savannas around the rim of Amazonia, but also by the potentially significant role of earthworms in the formation and resilience of Amazonian Dark Earths. Through the bioturbating action of earthworms, soil is biologically, chemically, and physically altered; nutrients are translocated; organic matter is decomposed and transformed; and the surrounding biota interacts as a large orchestra where the soil musicians play together on the various instruments but where earthworms take a leading role, enhancing microbial activity and generally stimulating plant growth. In this article, we assess the remarkable role of earthworms at the center of soil pedogenetic processes within anthropogenic landscapes, dissecting their functions with a special focus on Amazonian Dark Earths.

Equipe EABIOmEAGROSUP; Soils are self-organized ecological systems within which organisms interact within a nested suite of discrete scales. Microorganisms form communities and physical structures at the smallest scale (microns), followed by the community of their predators organized in microfoodwebs (tens of microns), the functional domains built by ecosystem engineers (centimeters to meters), ecosystems, and landscapes. Ecosystem engineers, principally plant roots, earthworms, termites, and ants, play key roles in creating habitats for other organisms and controlling their activities through physical and biochemical processes. The biogenic, organic, and organomineral structures that they produce accumulate in the soil space to form three-dimensional mosaics of functional domains, inhabited by specific communities of smaller organisms (microfauna and mesofauna, microorganisms) that drive soil processes through specific pathways. Ecosystem engineers also produce signaling and energy-rich molecules that act as ecological mediators of biological engineering processes. Energy-rich ecological mediators may selectively activate microbial populations and trigger priming effects, resulting in the degradation, synthesis, and sequestration of specific organic substrates. Signaling molecules inform soil organisms of their producers' respective presences and change physiologies by modifying gene expression and through eliciting hormonal responses. Protection of plants against pests and diseases is largely achieved via these processes. At the highest scales, the delivery of ecosystem services emerges through the functioning of self-organized systems nested within each other. The integrity of the different subsystems at each scale and the quality of their interconnections are a precondition for an optimum and sustainable delivery of ecosystem services. Lastly, we present seven general research questions whose resolution will provide a firmer base for the proposed conceptual framework while offering new insights for sustainable use of the soil resource.

Peregrine pheretimoid earthworms, commonly known as jumping worms, are members of the family Megascolecidae that have become widely established outside of their native ranges. In many parts of the world this represents a second wave of earthworm invasions, following the introduction of peregrine European earthworms in the family Lumbricidae during the colonial era. Forest ecologists, turf managers, gardeners, and other land managers are concerned about the observed or presumed negative effects of jumping worms on invaded habitats. Although research on jumping worms has accelerated in recent decades, our understanding of their ecology remains limited. We compiled techniques useful to researchers working to fill voids in our understanding. Similar past efforts have focused on tools used to study common European species. Differences in life cycle, behavior, morphology, and physiology make it difficult to transfer experiences with European earthworms to pheretimoids. For example, the loss of reproductive features in many pheretimoid populations poses a challenge for identification, and techniques for individually tagging lumbricid earthworms have been less successful for megascolecids. The active and ongoing expansion of pheretimoid populations in many areas requires increased attention on distributed methods, such as citizen-science protocols, for detecting and tracking their expansion. Finally, the desire to limit populations of pheretimoids, including those invading gardens and other environments that might be successfully restored, has exposed the lack of options for targeted, effective control of unwanted earthworms. We identify opportunities to address these voids in our methodological tool kit and encourage the adaptation of techniques previously used in the study and management of other invasive animals.

Earthworm populations often increase with the adoption of no-tillage (NT) practices, but few studies have evaluated earthworm diversity in these agroecosystems. In the present study we assessed earthworm species richness in 40 sites under NT and six native Atlantic forest fragments in Western Paraná, Southern Brazil. At each site earthworms were sampled quantitatively (n=5) and qualitatively (n=5), by handsorting soil monoliths (20 x 20 cm width x 20 cm depth), totaling 460 samples overall. Earthworms were killed and fixed in 96% ethanol, counted and identified. Overall, 18 species were found, in the families Acanthodrilidae, Glossoscolecidae, Megascolecidae, Rhinodrilidae and Ocnerodrilidae, of which 10 were native and eight exotic. No-tillage agroecosystems had larger earthworm populations and higher species richness overall than native forests, although this was mainly due to colonization of these agricultural fields by exotic species. Mostly native species were found in the Atlantic forests, highlighting the importance of these habitats as refugia for native earthworm species conservation.

The Campos Gerais region of Paraná are on an ancient plateau of sandstone origin and are covered with a diverse vegetation including mainly grasslands and various types of Atlantic Forest (particularly Araucaria forest). The region represents an important natural capital for biodiversity conservation as well as for agricultural and forestry production. However, little is known of the species richness and diversity of soil macroinvertebrates in this region. In the present study we evaluated earthworm species occurrence and richness in five land use systems (LUS) in the southern part of the Campos Gerais in Lapa county. Earthworms were handsorted from up to 18 soil monoliths on five occasions over three years (Feb. 2014, Feb., Mar., Nov. 2015, Jul. 2016) in the following LUS: old native forest, native grassland, young regenerating forest and grass lawn in the Uru Reserve and annual crop fields (soybean) in neighboring private farms (not all systems were sampled on all occasions). Nine earthworm species belonging to four families and five genera were found, of which six were native and three exotic species (Dichogaster gracilis, Amynthas gracilis, A. corticis). Of the native species, Urobenus brasiliensis and Andiorrhinus duseni (a large bodied-worm) are already well known from S and SE Brazil, while the remaining four were new species that require further description (Fimoscolex n.sp.1 and n.sp.2, Glossoscolex n.sp.1 and n.sp.2). In general, more species were found in February (summer) than March and November. The cropping system (soybean) had the lowest abundance and species richness in relation to other sites, although in the young and old forests no earthworms were found on some sample dates. Given the several new species found in this small reserve, and the relatively few sites studied thus far in the Campos Gerais, further efforts are needed to adequately characterize the earthworm fauna of the region, from which many other species are expected.

Five new species-group taxa of Clitellata of the genus Glossoscolex from Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil are described in this paper: Glossoscolex (Glossoscolex) riograndensis n. sp. has three subspecies, G. (G.) riograndensis riograndensis , G. (G.) riograndensis pollulus n. ssp., G. (G.) riograndensis nativus n. ssp. The two other new species are named G. (G.) pastivus n. sp., and G. (G.) pampas n. sp. All new species are part of the truncatus species group within the subgenus , characterized by the presence of male pores in segment xvii . A single unnamed specimen, also described here, is deemed to belong to a sixth new species-group taxon of the truncatus group. A tabular character comparison of the new taxa and known and morphologically similar species is given. Information on the habitat, such as vegetation cover and soil characteristics, is given as well. G . ( G. ) r. riograndensis and G. (G.) r. pollulus had an unusual storage of sperm in the nephridia. Histological sections were performed to verify it.

Earthworms are important macroinvertebrates that provide soil ecosystem services and are also useful environmental bioindicators. Urban areas around the world have major impacts on biodiversity and the objective of the present study was to assess the role of urban parks of Curitiba, Parana State, in preserving native earthworm species. Earthworm populations were sampled in five parks (Barigui, Tingui, Barreirinha, Passauna and the Botanic Garden), in two land use systems (grass lawns and secondary forest fragments) in two seasons, summer (November 2013) and winter (June 2014). A total of twelve earthworm species were identified, belonging to six families: Glossoscolex sp.1, Fimoscolex sp . 1 , sp.2 and sp.3 (Glossoscolecidae), Pontoscolex corethrurus (Rhinodrilidae), Eukerria tucumana (Ocnerodrilidae), Amynthas gracilis , Amynthas corticis, Metaphire californica (Megascolecidae), Aporrectodea rosea and Lumbricus rubellus (Lumbricidae), the latter being the first record for this species in Brazil. In addition, a single unidentified juvenile Dichogaster sp. (Acanthodrilidae) was found. Four new species were found and three out of five urban parks of Curitiba (especially the Botanic Garden) were able to preserve native species, though their abundance was low and exotic species (n=8) predominated, attributed to human disturbance that favors invasion and colonization of exotic earthworms.

Three new earthworm species in two genera of the Glossoscolecidae family, common in Southern and Southeastern Brazil, collected in the highland plateaus of Paraná, are described: Glossoscolex (Glossoscolex) maschio sp. nov. and Glossoscolex (Glossoscolex) embrapaensis sp. nov., and Fimoscolex nivae sp. nov. G. embrapaensis is a small, unpigmented endogeic belonging to the truncatus species group, having male pore on segment 17, while G. maschio is a large, pigmented epiendogeic species belonging to the giganteus species group, having male pore on segment 19. F. nivae is a very slender, small unpigmented endogeic species. All specimens were collected in native Araucaria forest on the grounds of Embrapa Forestry, but G. maschio was found exclusively associated with native forest, while G. embrapaensis and F. nivae were also collected in Eucalyptus, Pinus or Araucaria plantations, native grassland or fallow land, indicating their resistance to soil disturbance and land use change.

The knowledge regarding earthworm species richness in subtropical Brazil is limited, particularly in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (RS), where only a few sites have been sampled. In this study we assessed earthworm richness in different ecosystems of RS, prioritizing un-sampled regions. Fifteen ecosystems, including native vegetation and other ecosystems with variable levels of disturbance were sampled in 30 counties in RS, totaling 77 sampling points, mainly in the Pampa biome. Qualitative sampling was performed by handsorting soil monoliths and fixing the earthworms in 4% formalin solution. Species identification was based on morphological characters, and species richness and Shannon (H) and McIntosh (U) diversity indices were calculated for each ecosystem. Twenty-one earthworm species were identified, belonging to seven families: Glossoscolecidae (8), Rhinodrilidae (2), Ocnerodrilidae (4), Megascolecidae (4), Acanthodrilidae (1), Lumbricidae (1) and Criodrilidae (1). From these, ten are new species belonging to the genera: Glossoscolex (6), Fimoscolex (1), Kerriona (1), Eukerria (1), and one aquatic species of the Criodrilidae family, belonging to a new genus. Most of the native species ( Urobenus brasiliensis , Fimoscolex n.sp.1 and the Glossoscolex spp.) predominated in ecosystems little altered by human activity, while exotic ( Amynthas gracilis , Amynthas rodericensis , Metaphire californica , Aporrectodea trapezoides ) and peregrine species ( Pontoscolex corethrurus ) predominated in areas with more human disturbance. Native ecosystems with lower disturbance, particularly forests and native pastures had higher diversity than disturbed sites. This is the first record of A. rodericencis for Brazil and most sites represent new collection records for the known species in RS.

International audience; Pontoscolex corethrurus is the most widespread earthworm species in tropical and sub-tropical zones and one of the most studied in soil science. Although, ecological interactions of P. corethrurus with its environment are well documented, the taxonomic status of the species remains unclear. In this study, we investigated phylogenetic relationships within the genus Pontoscolex, in particular focusing on morphologically indistinguishable (i.e., cryptic) lineages. A total of 792 specimens collected from 25 different countries and islands all over the world were analyzed using two mitochondrial (COI and 16S rDNA) and two nuclear (internal transcribed spacers 2 and 28S rDNA) markers, and a total of 11 morphological characters both internal and external were investigated in all genetically characterized lineages. A large-scale multilocus sequence data matrix was also obtained for Pontoscolex spp. specimens using the Anchored Hybrid Enrichment (AHE) method. Multilocus phylogenetic and phylogenomic analyses, combined with species delimitation methods; including single locus (mPTP, ABGD) and multilocus (BPP) approaches, revealed congruent results. Four cryptic species were supported within the P. corethrurus species complex, and four potentially new species within the genus Pontoscolex. One widespread lineage (L1), within P. corethrurus complex was observed in the current population of Fritz Muller's garden where P. corethrurus was first described in 1856. Cryptic lineages were observed in sympatry at several localities. This, in combination with observed heteroplasmy in COI gene in one population raises an important question of reproductive isolation between these species.

Findings pertinent to 11 earthworm species from Venezuela and Brazil are reported. Six of these species are described as new to science, one is re-described and relocated in the genus Andiorrhinus, and new sites of occurrence are reported for four other species. Eight species of oligochaetes were found in the Andes in the state of Mérida, Venezuela: Andiorrhinus (Turedrilus) duranti sp. nov., Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) timotocuica sp. nov., Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) torondoy sp. nov., Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) sp. 1, Andiorrhinus (Quibario) tatuy sp. nov., Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) kuika (Righi, 1993), Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) mukuci (Righi, 1993), and Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) rimeda (RighiAraujo, 2000). Andiorrhinus (Meridrilus) sp. 1, represented by one specimen only, is possibly a new species. Three other species were collected in Brazil: Andiorrhinus (Amazonidrilus) karinae sp. nov. in the Cerrado bioregion of Mato Grosso state; Andiorrhinus (Amazonidrilus) rodriguezi sp. nov. in the Amazon region in compost, and Andiorrhinus (Amazonidrilus) duseni (Michaelsen, 1918) in the Atlantic Forest, in the states of São Paulo and Paraná, the last species characterized by broad geographical and land use occurrences. The new subgenus Quibario was distinguished by the presence of three pairs of hearts in segments 10, 11, and 12. Keys are also included to differentiate species of subgenera Amazonidrilus and Meridrilus. The implications of these results in the context of ecological interactions, and dispersion of Andiorrhinus species in South America are discussed.

The diversity of cultivated plants in the agroforestry systems can create conditions to maintain the vital edaphic processes similar to natural regeneration areas. We studied agroforestry systems with five (AF5) and ten years (AF10) of age in comparison with natural regeneration areas for 10 years (NR) in the Atlantic Forest Biome in an area of environmental fragility. The microbial biomass carbon (MB-C), soil basal respiration (BResp), metabolic quotient (q-CO2) and microbial quotient (q-mic) were evaluated in the entire profile of a Typic Udorthents, obtaining stratified data in the 0–2.5; 2.5–5; 5–10; 10–15; 15–30; 30–45 and 45–60 cm layers. The NR area had the highest MB-C (866 mg C kg−1 soil) and BResp (5 mg C-CO2 kg−1 soil h−1) in the 0–2.5 cm layer in relation to the AF5 (686 mg C kg−1 soil; 4 mg C-CO2 kg−1 soil h−1) and AF10 (478 mg C kg−1 soil; 4 mg C-CO2 kg−1 soil h−1). However, the ratios did not differ among treatments, presenting average values in the profile of 7 mg C-CO2 g−1 MB-C h−1 for q-CO2 and 1.6 % for q-mic, demonstrating vital process similarity between systems. The phytosociological characteristics that interfere with the microbiological attributes were the plant species richness (0–2.5 cm) and plant diversity (2.5–5 cm). The epiedaphic fauna active in the litter was also assessed by pitfall traps and the average number of individuals per trap (238 for NR, 281 for AF5, 299 for AF10), the order richness (15 for NR; 14 for AF5, 13 for AF10) and relative frequencies did not differ among treatments, confirming that agroforests are in an ecosystem self-regulation condition function similar to natural regeneration, even with the removal of food products and income generation for the farmers.

The soil mesofauna plays a role in organic matter comminution and decomposition, and can be used as bioindicators, since they are sensitive to soil management, vegetation and climate changes. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate mesofauna density and diversity in different land use systems to identify faunal relationships with soil properties, management and seasonality. The study area included five land use systems in Ponta Grossa municipality, Paraná State: integrated crop-livestock (ICL), integrated crop-livestock-forestry (ICLF), grazed native pasture (NP), Eucalyptus dunnii plantation (EU) and no-tillage (NT) cropping systems. In each system, eight soil samples for mesofauna were collected with Berlese funnels of 8 cm diameter along a transect in three replicate plots of 50 m × 100 m. For physical and chemical analysis, soil was sampled at five points per plot in two seasons: winter 2012 and autumn 2013. Data were statistically analyzed using ANOVA and Duncan?s test (P < 0.05), nonparametric statistics (when necessary) and redundancy analysis (RDA). Diversity was calculated based on the group richness and Simpson index. The main mesofauna groups found were: Acarina, Collembola and Hymenoptera. Diplopoda, Enchytraeidae, Isopoda, Collembola, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera and Coleoptera larvae were more abundant in autumn than winter. Soil moisture was the main factor responsible for higher mesofauna abundance in autumn. Integrated production systems, especially ICLF had similar invertebrate community abundance and composition with EU, while NT favored Oribatid mites, although the use of insecticides, herbicides and fungicides reduced total mesofauna density. Most correlations between mesofauna and physical-chemical attributes in the winter were not observed in the autumn and vice versa, revealing that there are more factors involved in regulating soil mesofauna distribution. Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-20T01:07:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2017G.BrownJASTSoilinvertebrates.pdf: 429971 bytes, checksum: 14f8e138deeec7fb1ae9b16247aadb40 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-12-22