Erratum Science for the Report "Global distribution of earthworm diversity"

Abstract

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 9212 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 mid-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 and habitat cover were found to be more important in shaping earthworm communities than soil properties. These findings suggest that climate and habitat change may have serious implications for earthworm communities and for the functions they provide.