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The rise in the world demand for food poses a challenge to our ability to sustain soil fertility and sustainability. The increasing use of no-till agriculture, adopted in many areas of the world as an alternative to conventional farming, may contribute to reduce the erosion of soils and the increase in the soil carbon pool. However, the advantages of no-till agriculture are jeopardized when its use is linked to the expansion of crop monoculture. The aim of this study was to survey bacterial communities to find indicators of soil quality related to contrasting agriculture management in soils under no-till farming. Four sites in production agriculture, with different soil properties, situated across a west-east transect in the most productive region in the Argentinean pampas, were taken as the basis for replication. Working definitions of Good no-till Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Poor no-till Agricultural Practices (PAP) were adopted for two distinct scenarios in terms of crop rotation, fertilization, agrochemicals use and pest control. Non-cultivated soils nearby the agricultural sites were taken as additional control treatments. Tag-encoded pyrosequencing was used to deeply sample the 16S rRNA gene from bacteria residing in soils corresponding to the three treatments at the four locations. Although bacterial communities as a whole appeared to be structured chiefly by a marked biogeographic provincialism, the distribution of a few taxa was shaped as well by environmental conditions related to agricultural management practices. A statistically supported approach was used to define candidates for management-indicator organisms, subsequently validated using quantitative PCR. We suggest that the ratio between the normalized abundance of a selected group of bacteria within the GP1 group of the phylum Acidobacteria and the genus Rubellimicrobium of the Alphaproteobacteria may serve as a potential management-indicator to discriminate between sustainable vs. non-sustainable agricultural practices in the Pampa region.

Earthworms are ecosystem engineers that are sensitive to land-use intensification and edaphic conditions, yet their ecology remains poorly understood in transformed semi-arid landscapes. We hypothesized that, in recently colonized agroecosystems, land-use intensity and physicochemical soil conditions jointly filter the earthworm assembly. In the recently irrigated Lower Valley of the Negro River, Patagonia, Argentina, we sampled earthworms and soils across five land uses—riparian reference sites, fruit orchards, pastures, cereal crops, and horticulture plots—in landscapes dominated by Natrargid Ustolls and Fluventic Haplocambids. We found five species, all of which were exotic Lumbricidae, including the first Argentine record for Murchieona minuscula, indicating a recent colonization following human-mediated niche construction that created an ecological island. The earthworm abundance and biomass were highest in permanent and semi-permanent uses and were driven primarily by soil moisture, pH, and particulate organic matter. Crucially, our results reveal that land-use intensity filters communities by restricting the initial colonization rather than through local extinctions. These findings confirm that soil properties mediate the impact of land use on earthworm assemblages. The inclusion of pastures and fruit orchards in the rotations favors the earthworm populations that, despite low diversity, enhance soil functioning and contribute to agricultural sustainability in semi-arid irrigated agroecosystems.

Nineteen geographical records for species of Odonata in 2 provinces of Argentina are documented. We provided records for 9 newly recorded species for Córdoba: Lestes spatula Fraser, 1946, Andinagrion peterseni (Ris, 1908), Argentagrion ambiguum (Ris, 1904), Erythemis attala (Selys in Sagra, 1857), Erythemis plebeja (Burmeister, 1839), Erythrodiplax media Borror, 1942, Micrathyria longifasciata Calvert, 1909, Micrathyria hypodidyma Calvert, 1906, and Tramea cophysa Hagen, 1867. In San Luis, we provided records for 10 newly recorded species: Hetaerina rosea Selys, 1853, Acanthagrion lancea Selys, 1876, Ischnura fluviatilis Selys, 1876, Oxyagrion rubidium (Rambur, 1842), Castoraeschna decurvata Dunkle & Cook, 1984, Rhionaeschna pallipes (Fraser, 1947), Phyllocycla argentina (Hagen in Selys, 1878), Erythrodiplax corallina (Brauer, 1865), Perithemis mooma Kirby, 1889, and Planiplax erythropyga (Karsch, 1891). Among these records, we extend the geographic distribution of A. peterseni and R. pallipes , which are endemic to Argentina and recorded P. erythropyga for the first time in Chaco phytogeographic province.

Earthworms are an important soil taxon as ecosystem engineers, providing a variety of crucial ecosystem functions and services. Little is known about their diversity and distribution at large spatial scales, despite the availability of considerable amounts of local-scale data. Earthworm diversity data, obtained from the primary literature or provided directly by authors, were collated with information on site locations, including coordinates, habitat cover, and soil properties. Datasets were required, at a minimum, to include abundance or biomass of earthworms at a site. Where possible, site-level species lists were included, as well as the abundance and biomass of individual species and ecological groups. This global dataset contains 10,840 sites, with 184 species, from 60 countries and all continents except Antarctica. The data were obtained from 182 published articles, published between 1973 and 2017, and 17 unpublished datasets. Amalgamating data into a single global database will assist researchers in investigating and answering a wide variety of pressing questions, for example, jointly assessing aboveground and belowground biodiversity distributions and drivers of biodiversity change. Measurement(s) earthworm communities • Abundance • organic material • Diversity • environmental properties Technology Type(s) digital curation Factor Type(s) location Sample Characteristic - Organism Lumbricina Sample Characteristic - Environment soil Sample Characteristic - Location global Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13399118

Earthworms are an important soil taxon as ecosystem engineers, providing a variety of crucial ecosystem functions and services. Little is known about their diversity and distribution at large spatial scales, despite the availability of considerable amounts of local-scale data. Earthworm diversity data, obtained from the primary literature or provided directly by authors, were collated with information on site locations, including coordinates, habitat cover, and soil properties. Datasets were required, at a minimum, to include abundance or biomass of earthworms at a site. Where possible, site-level species lists were included, as well as the abundance and biomass of individual species and ecological groups. This global dataset contains 10,840 sites, with 184 species, from 60 countries and all continents except Antarctica. The data were obtained from 182 published articles, published between 1973 and 2017, and 17 unpublished datasets. Amalgamating data into a single global database will assist researchers in investigating and answering a wide variety of pressing questions, for example, jointly assessing aboveground and belowground biodiversity distributions and drivers of biodiversity change.

Nineteen geographical records for species of Odonata in 2 provinces of Argentina are documented. We provided records for 9 newly recorded species for Córdoba: Lestes spatula Fraser, 1946, Andinagrion peterseni (Ris, 1908), Argentagrion ambiguum (Ris, 1904), Erythemis attala (Selys in Sagra, 1857), Erythemis plebeja (Burmeister, 1839), Erythrodiplax media Borror, 1942, Micrathyria longifasciata Calvert, 1909, Micrathyria hypodidyma Calvert, 1906, and Tramea cophysa Hagen, 1867. In San Luis, we provided records for 10 newly recorded species: Hetaerina rosea Selys, 1853, Acanthagrion lancea Selys, 1876, Ischnura fluviatilis Selys, 1876, Oxyagrion rubidium (Rambur, 1842), Castoraeschna decurvata Dunkle & Cook, 1984, Rhionaeschna pallipes (Fraser, 1947), Phyllocycla argentina (Hagen in Selys, 1878), Erythrodiplax corallina (Brauer, 1865), Perithemis mooma Kirby, 1889, and Planiplax erythropyga (Karsch, 1891). Among these records, we extend the geographic distribution of A. peterseni and R. pallipes, which are endemic to Argentina and recorded P. erythropyga for the first time in Chaco phytogeographic province.

Earthworms are key components of soil ecological communities, performing vital functions in decomposition and nutrient cycling through ecosystems. Using data from more than 7000 sites, Phillips et al. developed global maps of the distribution of earthworm diversity, abundance, and biomass (see the Perspective by Fierer). The patterns differ from those typically found in aboveground taxa; there are peaks of diversity and abundance in the mid-latitude regions and peaks of biomass in the tropics. Climate variables strongly influence these patterns, and changes are likely to have cascading effects on other soil organisms and wider ecosystem functions.Science, this issue p. 480; see also p. 425Soil 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.

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.

A fortified cookie from dehydrated swamp taro (Cyrtosperma merkusii) combined with allpurpose enriched wheat flour was developed. The study was performed in a Randomized Complete Block Design with three treatments: unfortified swamp taro (ST) cookie, ST cookie with dehydrated moringa (Moringa oleífera) leaves, ST cookie with dehydrated moringa leaves and squash (Cucurbita moschata). The response variables included nutritional profiling of the finished products of the three treatments through proximate analysis of total crude protein, total crude lipid, total crude fiber, total moisture, mineral, water activity, and vitamin A content. The sensory characterization of the fortified cookies was performed in a Complete Randomized Design, and the response variables were the quality attribute descriptions and acceptability of the products. The moisture, protein, crude fiber, and soluble carbohydrate contents of the cookies with fortifications did not significantly differ from the unfortified cookies (p > 0.05), but the fat, total mineral content and the vitamin A content of the fortified cookies were significantly higher than the unfortified cookies (p < 0.05). The cookies developed using dehydrated swamp taro with moringa and squash can be described as nutritious in terms of protein content (11%) with high calorie value from crude fat (16.5-18%) and high soluble carbohydrate (61.5-63.2%). Based on the proximate composition of the cookies, 15 cookies at 13.3 g/cookie could provide about 22 g protein equivalent to one third of the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for protein, 34-36 g fat and 122-126 g carbohydrate equivalent to one half of the RDA for fat and carbohydrate and >100% of the vitamin A daily requirement in accordance with the estimated 2000-calorie RDA of a 50-kg normal adult. After sensory evaluation using the 9-point hedonic scale, panellists described the fortified cookies to be highly acceptable in terms of appearance and moderately acceptable in terms of texture and flavour.