Although farming practices have intensified since the early 19th century, numerous studies highlight the significant negative effects of agriculture on soil functioning leading to a significant loss in soil nutrient and organic matter, as well as to a decline in the biodiversity associated with these ecosystems. Soil biodiversity plays a recognised role in edaphic processes: through their activity micro-organisms (bacteria, fungi), mesofauna (mites and springtails) and macrofauna (e.g. earthworms, ants and spiders) contribute to water and nutrient cycles as well as to soil organic matter and carbon sequestration. Mediterranean region is known to be a biodiversity hotspot, but it is also one of the areas subjected to major climate change (more frequent extreme heat events, depletion of water resources). To face the current climate crisis, it is thus necessary to define technical itineraries that will increase the resistance and resilience of cropping systems to biotic and abiotic stresses, while preserving both the systems' productivity and the biodiversity of Mediterranean soils.

This study aims to understand (i) how do soil fauna communities respond to different practices? and (ii) how do these practices influence biodiversity-function links? We propose a multi-taxa analysis to assess the effect of various Mediterranean agro-systems on soil biodiversity and its associated functions. The response of edaphic communities to agricultural practices will be assessed by a multi-taxa analysis of arthropods (spiders, carabid beetles, ants and springtails) based on the use of functional traits (i.e. morphological, physiological, behavioural properties or properties related to their life cycle). This functional approach makes it possible to go beyond the taxonomic limits between organisms (e.g. spiders or springtails) and to identify more easily processes involved in the response of organisms to their environment (e.g. predation, dispersion).

Thirty crop systems (maize, vineyards and aromatic plants) from Spain, Portugal, Italy, Morocco, Tunisia and France were sampled between May 2022 and February 2024. Results focusing on the effect of different alternative practices (plant cover, addition of organic matter, tillage intensity) along a climatic gradient will be presented. This work aims to contribute to identify ‘eco-friendly' practices and to improve the link between the responses of communities and ecosystem functioning.