2025 Ecosystem Transformation 8 (4), 120-137

Diversity of earthworm communities in the European part of Russia: field data and model estimations

Ivanova N.V.  , Shashkov M.P., Ermolov S.A.

The predictions of the global earthworm community diversity spatial model, published by H.R.P. Phillips et al. (2019), and field data for earthworm surveys available for the European part of Russia were compared. We analyzed early literature dataset comprised 271 surveys. According to the literature data, 25 earthworm species are reported in the European part of Russia, total of 1 to 9 species were recorded per survey. The greatest species richness was recorded in the broad-leaved forests (on average, 5 ± 2 species) and in the urbanized areas (5 ± 2 species), the lowest (2 ± 0 species) was in larch forests. The highest earthworm population density was observed in broad-leaved forests (217 ± 168 ind./m2), the lowest (5 ± 0 ind./m2), in larch forests. The field assesments considerably exceeded the modelling results. According to the model, species richness calculated for the sampling sites was 1 ± 1 species on average, population density, 2 ± 1 ind./m2. These discrepancies were due to an insufficient volume of input data for modelling; the latter, in turn, was due to strict criteria for data selection.

N. V. Ivanova
Institute of Mathematical Problems of Biology RAS – the Branch of Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics of Russian Academy of Sciences
ul. professora Vitkevicha 1, Pushchino, Moscow Oblast, 142290 Russia

natalya.dryomys@gmail.com

M. P. Shashkov
Institute of Mathematical Problems of Biology RAS – the Branch of Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics of Russian Academy of Sciences
ul. professora Vitkevicha 1, Pushchino, Moscow Oblast, 142290 Russia


S. A. Ermolov
Institute of Mathematical Problems of Biology RAS – the Branch of Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics, Russian Academy of Sciences
Professor Vitkevich St. 1, Pushchino, Moscow Oblast, 142290 Russia

Centre for Forest Ecology and Productivity, Russian Academy of Sciences
Profsoyuznaya St. 84/32 bldg. 14, Moscow, 117997 Russia

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