Agriculture breaks down traditionalbiogeographic barriers of soil fungi by Ziheng Peng & Gehong Wei & Shuo Jiao instant download

Agriculture breaks down traditionalbiogeographic barriers of soil fungi by Ziheng Peng & Gehong Wei & Shuo Jiao instant download

SCIENCE FOR SOCIETY As global food demands rise, agricultural expansion is one of the most pervasivedrivers of biodiversity change on Earth. Understanding how agriculture shapes biodiversity is critical forbuilding sustainable food systems and protecting ecosystem health. While farming is essential to feed theworld, it also profoundly reshapes the natural world in ways we are only beginning to understand. In thisstudy, we examined how soil fungal communities change when natural habitats such as forests, grasslands,and wetlands are converted into farmland. Surprisingly, we found that fungal diversity tends to increase inagricultural soils but at the cost of losing unique species and biogeographic identity. Instead of followingtraditional global biodiversity patterns—for example, having more species near the equator—we observeda reversal of this trend under agricultural land use, with new diversity hotspots emerging in unexpected places. These changes not only affect the health of soils and crops but also reduce the uniqueness of local ecosystems, leading to more uniform and potentially less resilient landscapes. By understanding how land-usechanges reshape microbial biogeography, we can better anticipate the ecological costs of intensive farmingand inform more sustainable land management. Our research provides a scientific foundation for integratingbiodiversity considerations into agricultural and conservation planning.