Département Gestion des Ressources Naturelles et Systèmes de Production, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique et Technologique, Institut de l’Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles (CNRST, INERA), BP 208 Fada N’Gourma, Burkina Faso
Due to its multiple functions, soil macrofauna plays a major role in the functioning of agroecosystems. However, its abundance and diversity can be influenced by various human activities such as agricultural practices. This study, initiated on ferric lixisols in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of Burkina Faso, aims to evaluate the effects of four agroecological practices on soil macrofauna. So, forty farmers' plots were sampled, based on a typology of cropping practices, associating water and soil conservation techniques (stone barriers) with generalized or localized (zaï) application of organic matter. Generalized input of organic matter is combined with mineral fertilization by microdose or not and localized input is combined with crop rotation or not. Macrofauna was collected, sixty days after sowing, using the monolith method. Three (3) monoliths were collected per plot. Manually sorted macrofauna was identified in the laboratory. The results allowed that thirty-six (36) families were identified whom the best abundant are: Termitidae (35 %), Formicidae (18 %) and Iulidae (7.7 %). Functionally, saprophages constitute 61.4 % of the population against 16.6 % of phytophagous, 13.9% of predators and 7.6 % of geophagous. Agroecological practices with uniform application of organic manure yielded the highest number of invertebrates (62.2 %) compared to localized application (37.8 %). The use of organic manure as an agroecological practice allows for better colonization of the soil by living organisms, provided that it is evenly distributed throughout the plot.