首页|Mite density, not diversity, declines with biomass removal in Patagonian woodlands

Mite density, not diversity, declines with biomass removal in Patagonian woodlands

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  • NSTL
  • Elsevier
Belowground biodiversity loss from anthropogenic causes is far less addressed and quantified than aboveground biodiversity loss. Soil fauna supports soil productivity and biogeochemical cycles, and their decline needs further research. We tested the effects of a woodland harvest gradient (0, 30, 50, and 70% biomass removal) on litterfall, mesofauna density, and Oribatida diversity in three sites of northwestern Patagonia (Argentina). Sites contrasted in plant community structure and productivity. Acari from litter and soil were compared. Annual litter production showed a 58% decline at the highest harvest intensity level, which was constant across sites. Litter structural a- diversity decreased with the highest intensity harvest only at the high productivity site. The density of soil-inhabiting Acari did not change with increasing harvest intensity, while the density of Acari inhabiting the litter decreased by 65% at the highest harvest intensity. Within Acari, Oribatida inhabiting the litter had the most significant density decline with increasing harvest intensity. Oribatida richness and alpha- diversity only differed among sites, suggesting resistance to increasing biomass removal despite shifts in litter production and litter structural diversity. Prostigmata did not respond to increasing biomass removal either in soil or litter. Our study is the first to assess Acari response to an aboveground biomass removal gradient in southern woodlands. Applying high biomass removal to low productivity sites can compromise micro detritivore density and thus, impair its functional role. Site productivity should be considered in management plans entailing conservation of soil fauna in southern woodlands.

AcariOribatidaDensityalpha-DiversityBiomass removalWoodlands

Fernandez, Margarita M.、Casas, Cecilia、Bedano, Jose C.、Eissenstat, David M.、Kaye, Margot W.、Garcia, Ivana M.、Kun, Marcelo E.、Garibaldi, Lucas A.

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Univ Nacl Rio Negro, Inst Invest Recursos Nat Agroecol & Desarrollo Ru, Viedma, Rio Negro, Argentina

Univ Buenos Aires, CONICET, Fac Agron, IFEVA, Ave San Martin 4453 C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, DF, Argentina

Univ Nacl Rio Cuarto, FCEFQYN, Dept Geol, Dept Ciencias Nat, Cordoba, Argentina

Penn State Univ, Intercoll Grad Degree Program Ecol, Dept Ecosyst Sci & Management, University Pk, PA 16802 USA

Univ Nacl Comahue, Ctr Reg Univ Bariloche, Lab Zool, Quintral 1250, San Carlos De Bariloche, Rio Negro, Argentina

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2022

10.1016/j.apsoil.2021.104242

Applied Soil Ecology

Applied Soil Ecology

SCI
ISSN：0929-1393
年,卷(期)：2022.169
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