Abstract: Soil erodibility is an important indicator of assessing impact of erosion on soil, and also an important parameter for predicting soil erosion. In order to promote relevant research of soil erodibility factor in the future, we present state of the art in China and abroad in terms of its spatial prediction and error and uncertainty of mapping. Analysis shows that accurately acquiring spatial distribution of soil erodibility factor is of practical significance, but it is a difficult task due to complex factors which affect soil erodibility factor. In the future, we should lay emphasis on reducing mapping error, improving accuracy and controlling risk, and quantitatively analyzing the uncertainty of spatial prediction, in association with auxiliary information such as soil types, elevation, and remote sensing images.

Key words: soil erodibility, spatial prediction, mapping of soil erodibility factor, uncertainty, geostatistics