Drivers of the geographical distribution of nematode-based indices across Europe

Nematode-based indices (NBIs) are widely used as indicators of soil health, reflecting key aspects of soil functioning. However, their spatial variability at the European scale remains poorly understood, limiting their integration into soil health policies. This study examines the geographical distribution of the Structure Index and Enrichment Index across seven European environmental zones, identifies the soil-forming factors shaping these patterns, and assesses whether these relationships vary across zones. For this purpose, a pan-European nematode dataset was assembled spanning arable land, agricultural grasslands, natural grasslands, and forests. Structural equation modelling was applied to assess the role of the soil-forming factors: climate, topography, parent material and organisms, as well as indicators of disturbance: extreme weather events and land use intensity. Our findings reveal clear variation in both indices across environmental zones. For the Structure Index, land use effects overrode natural environmental variability, while the Enrichment Index showed increased variability in arable systems. While all soil-forming factors showed relationships with the NBIs, model performance was low. This suggests that key factors were missing, however, disturbance factors did emerge as a key driver. Additionally, the relationship between NBI and environmental drivers varied substantially across zones, emphasizing the need for region-specific approaches. These results highlight the importance of accounting for biogeographical context when interpreting NBIs as indicators for soil health. To enable their effective integration into soil health assessment and policy, future efforts should focus on harmonized sampling, improved data coverage, and the inclusion of ecologically relevant drivers, especially those capturing disturbance. • Nematode indices differ significantly across European environmental zones. • Arable land use overrides geographical variability for the Structure Index. • Soil-forming factors insufficiently explain the biogeography of nematode indices. • Disturbance factors are key drivers of the geographical distribution of nematode indices • Soil-forming factors show zone-specific relationships with nematode indices.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Applied Soil Ecology
Published
2025-08-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2025.106359
Primary Topic
Nematode management and characterization studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Drivers of the geographical distribution of nematode-based indices across Europe

Alexey A. Kudrin, Rachel Creamer, Andrea Čerevková, Marcel Ciobanu et al.
Applied Soil Ecology
Nematode management and characterization studies
article

Drivers of the geographical distribution of nematode-based indices across Europe

Alexey A. Kudrin, Rachel Creamer, Andrea Čerevková, Marcel Ciobanu, Juan E. Palomares‐Rius, Анна Алексеевна Сущук, D. S. Kalinkina, Branimir Nјežić, Nico Eisenhauer, Jakob Wallinga, Stefan Geisen, Vera Leatitia Mulder, Christian Mulder, Juha Mikola, R.G.M. de Goede, Louise Jackson, Mette Vestergård, Raquel Campos‐Herrera, Cécile Villenave, Sara Sánchez‐Moreno, Елизавета Михайловна Матвеева, Marie Sünnemann, Vlada Peneva, Lieven Waeyenberge, Liliane Rueß, Péter Nagy, Sofia R. Costa, Iuliana Popovici, Carmen Vázquez, Simone Cesarz, Doina Thais Constance Mani
article en

Abstract

Nematode-based indices (NBIs) are widely used as indicators of soil health, reflecting key aspects of soil functioning. However, their spatial variability at the European scale remains poorly understood, limiting their integration into soil health policies. This study examines the geographical distribution of the Structure Index and Enrichment Index across seven European environmental zones, identifies the soil-forming factors shaping these patterns, and assesses whether these relationships vary across zones. For this purpose, a pan-European nematode dataset was assembled spanning arable land, agricultural grasslands, natural grasslands, and forests. Structural equation modelling was applied to assess the role of the soil-forming factors: climate, topography, parent material and organisms, as well as indicators of disturbance: extreme weather events and land use intensity. Our findings reveal clear variation in both indices across environmental zones. For the Structure Index, land use effects overrode natural environmental variability, while the Enrichment Index showed increased variability in arable systems. While all soil-forming factors showed relationships with the NBIs, model performance was low. This suggests that key factors were missing, however, disturbance factors did emerge as a key driver. Additionally, the relationship between NBI and environmental drivers varied substantially across zones, emphasizing the need for region-specific approaches. These results highlight the importance of accounting for biogeographical context when interpreting NBIs as indicators for soil health. To enable their effective integration into soil health assessment and policy, future efforts should focus on harmonized sampling, improved data coverage, and the inclusion of ecologically relevant drivers, especially those capturing disturbance. • Nematode indices differ significantly across European environmental zones. • Arable land use overrides geographical variability for the Structure Index. • Soil-forming factors insufficiently explain the biogeography of nematode indices. • Disturbance factors are key drivers of the geographical distribution of nematode indices • Soil-forming factors show zone-specific relationships with nematode indices.

Applied Soil EcologyVol. 214
Magyar Agrár- és Élettudományi Egyetem (HU), University of Banja Luka (BA), Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (DE), Natural Resources Institute Finland (FI), University of Catania (IT), Institute of Biology of Komi Scientific Centre (RU), Institute of Parasitology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SK), National Institute of Research and Development for Biological Sciences (RO), Institute of Biology of Karelian Research Centre (RU), Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible (ES), Karelian Research Centre (RU), Gobierno de La Rioja (ES), University of California, Davis (US), Wageningen University & Research (NL), Leipzig University (DE), University of Minho (PT)
Zero hunger
Openalex Percentile: Top 85%
Nematode management and characterization studies
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.