Research in global change ecology relies heavily on global climatic grids derived from estimates of air temperature in open areas at around 2 m above the ground. These climatic grids do not reflect conditions below vegetation canopies and near the ground surface, where critical ecosystem functions occur and most terrestrial species reside. Here, we provide global maps of soil temperature and bioclimatic variables at a 1‐km²resolution for 0–5 and 5–15 cm soil depth. These maps were created by calculating the difference (i.e. offset) between in situ soil temperature measurements, based on time series from over 1200 1‐km²pixels (summarized from 8519 unique temperature sensors) across all the world's major terrestrial biomes, and coarse‐grained air temperature estimates from ERA5‐Land (an atmospheric reanalysis by the European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts). We show that mean annual soil temperature differs markedly from the corresponding gridded air temperature, by up to 10°C (mean = 3.0 ± 2.1°C), with substantial variation across biomes and seasons. Over the year, soils in cold and/or dry biomes are substantially warmer (+3.6 ± 2.3°C) than gridded air temperature, whereas soils in warm and humid environments are on average slightly cooler (−0.7 ± 2.3°C). The observed substantial and biome‐specific offsets emphasize that the projected impacts of climate and climate change on near‐surface biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are inaccurately assessed when air rather than soil temperature is used, especially in cold environments. The global soil‐related bioclimatic variables provided here are an important step forward for any application in ecology and related disciplines. Nevertheless, we highlight the need to fill remaining geographic gaps by collecting more in situ measurements of microclimate conditions to further enhance the spatiotemporal resolution of global soil temperature products for ecological applications.

Extensive cushions of Distichia muscoides found at high elevations in the Andes form deep deposits of peat and function as peatland. The location of Distichia peatlands at the highest elevations makes them susceptible to the effects of global change including global warming. Accumulation rates of organic matter are the key function of peatland ecosystems and are highly susceptible to changes in climate. This study used ²¹⁰Pb chronologies to infer the recent dynamics of three Distichia muscoides peatlands located above 4000 m in elevation. Chronological markers from dated volcanic eruptions were correlated to the ²¹⁰Pb chronologies of Distichia peat and validated the ²¹⁰Pb chronologies. Changes in ²¹⁰Pb activity with depth indicated rapid accumulation in recent times. Organic matter had a mean accumulation rate of 1400 g m⁻² yr⁻¹ during the past 10 years, with values well above the observed regional accumulation rate of 300–400 g m⁻² yr⁻¹. The same pattern was observed in peat accretion rates, with growth rates of 1–2 cm per year during the last 10 years. Cushion plants engineer their own environment, allowing the system to be less susceptible to direct changes in climate. However, the high rates of peat accretion in recent times may be originated from increasing temperatures and excess water from nearby glacier melt. However, glaciers are predicted to disappear during the next 20 years in the northern Andes, reducing water inputs in tropical high‐elevation ecosystems.