NEMATODES

About:

• What are they? Nematodes are roundworms and their size can vary from a tiny 0.2 millimetre to a few metres.
  
  
• Significance: These nematodes play a crucial role in the environment as they are responsible for production of about 19% of ammonia of the soil. They are also important bioindicators of soil ecosystem health.
  
  
• Recent study: In the first global analysis of nematodes, a team of over 50 researchers collected over 6,500 soil samples from all seven continents of the world. The study was done only on the top 15 cm of soil.
  
  
• Key findings:
  • There are about 57 billion nematodes for every human being on Earth.
    
    
  • Their total biomass comes to around 300 million tonnes which is about 80% of the combined weight of Earth’s humans.
    
    
  • These nematodes are responsible for 2.2% of the total carbon emission from soils.
    
    
  • At 38% of the total, sub-Arctic regions have the highest abundance of nematodes. The temperate region has the next highest abundance followed by the tropical regions.