Earthworms contribution to agricultural sustainability

Céline Pelosi et Lucas Petit-Dit-Grezeriat, équipe DISCOVE, ont participé à l'écriture  du chapitre 10 : "Earthworms contribution to agricultural sustainability" du livre  "Earthworms and Ecological Processes".

Résumé du chapitre 10 :

Soils are a major component of ecosystems and they provide many benefits to humanity. Located in the Earth’s critical zone, at the interface between the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the lithosphere, and the biosphere, soil biogeochemical cycles are essential for the sustenance of life in terrestrial ecosystems at a planetary scale. Soil is therefore one of the richest habitats for biological species. However, soils have for decades been subjected to many pressures that cause degradation and jeopardize their ability to provide services to humanity. Agriculture, in its capacity to ensure sufficient food for a growing human population, is mainly concerned with the soil degradation that lowers crop yields. Sustainable management practices are designed to produce higher crop yields and other services, including the regeneration of soil ecological functions, i.e., the intensification of all functions performed by soil organisms. This improvement in soil functions is recognized as a basis for sustainable agriculture (FAO, ITPS, GSBI, SCBD and EC 2020; Larbodière et al. 2020; FAO 2021, 2022). Soil biodiversity, seen through its taxonomic diversity, but also and above all through its functional diversity, is therefore at the heart of sustainable soil management. Among this soil biodiversity, earthworms, a major contributor to the animal biomass in soil, perform many ecological functions of interest. Often perceived as beneficial for the functioning of soils and indicators of their quality, we are now poised with a greater understanding of the contribution of earthworms to the sustainability of agriculture (e.g., Lavelle et al. 2006; Jouquet et al. 2014; Bertrand et al. 2015). In this chapter, we will briefly review the processes and functions provided by earthworms in soils, particularly those necessary to achieve agricultural sustainability. Next, we will analyze the effect of agricultural practices on earthworm communities, considering those that have either a negative or a positive impact on their communities. Finally, through case studies and knowledge from temperate and tropical environments, and from laboratory and field experiments, we will discuss the possibility of using earthworms to improve the productivity and sustainability of agricultural systems.