Study on soil biology in Vietnam - achievements and challenges

The article introduces the achievements and challenges in the research on the soil biology of Vietnam. It is focussed on microfauna, mesofauna and macrofauna, including families of arachnids (Arachnida), chilopods (Chilopoda), diplopods (Diplopoda), insects (Insecta), oligochaetes (Oligochaetes), and nine orders. Until present, the soil fauna diversity of Vietnam is known to have 1,809 species and subspecies, belonging to 687 genera and subgenera, and 195 families and subfamilies. The number of soil animal species identified have decreased in the following order: (1) Araneida: 491 > (2) Oribatida: 320 > (3) Hymenoptera: Formicidae: 307 > (4) Oligochaeta: 212 > (5) Diplopoda: 136 > (6) Collembola: 132 > (7) Isoptera: 101 > (8) Chilopoda: 71 > (9) Scorpionida: 39.Basing on the study of the oribatid mites (Oribatida) fauna, and the study results obtained during the period from 1977 until now, it also proposes further research directions on the soil biology of Vietnam as followings: (i) Study the biodiversity of soil organisms, (ii) Study ecology and function of soil organisms, (iii) Study of soil organisms contributes to the conservation and sustainable management of the environment and soil ecosystems, and (iv) Study soil organisms as indicators of environmental climate change in Vietnam.