Land-use intensification is a major driver of biodiversity loss. However, understanding how different components of land use drive biodiversity loss requires the investigation of multiple trophic levels across spatial scales. Using data from 150 agricultural grasslands in central Europe, we assess the influence of multiple components of local- and landscape-level land use on more than 4,000 above- and belowground taxa, spanning 20 trophic groups. Plot-level land-use intensity is strongly and negatively associated with aboveground trophic groups, but positively or not associated with belowground trophic groups. Meanwhile, both above- and belowground trophic groups respond to landscape-level land use, but to different drivers: aboveground diversity of grasslands is promoted by diverse surrounding land-cover, while belowground diversity is positively related to a high permanent forest cover in the surrounding landscape. These results highlight a role of landscape-level land use in shaping belowground communities, and suggest that revised agroecosystem management strategies are needed to conserve whole-ecosystem biodiversity.

BackgroundCollecting data on the localization of users is a key issue for the MASK (Mobile Airways Sentinel networK: the Allergy Diary) App. Data anonymization is a method of sanitization for privacy. The European Commission’s Article 29 Working Party stated that geolocation information is personal data.To assess geolocation using the MASK method and to compare two anonymization methods in the MASK database to find an optimal privacy method.MethodsGeolocation was studied for all people who used the Allergy Diary App from December 2015 to November 2017 and who reported medical outcomes. Two different anonymization methods have been evaluated: Noise addition (randomization) and k-anonymity (generalization).ResultsNinety-three thousand one hundred and sixteen days of VAS were collected from 8535 users and 54,500 (58.5%) were geolocalized, corresponding to 5428 users. Noise addition was found to be less accurate than k-anonymity using MASK data to protect the users’ life privacy.Discussionk-anonymity is an acceptable method for the anonymization of MASK data and results can be used for other databases.

The degree of ecological specialization influences the biological performance of species in their natural environment and affects the coexistence of different taxa. However, on a small scale, the diversity of microarthropods that coexist in forest soils and leaf litter seems inordinately high, a situation known as the “enigma of soil animal species diversity”. Since recent studies point to the importance of small‐scale heterogeneity to explain this phenomenon, we use interaction networks between microhabitats and their inhabitants to resolve and quantify the community structure (species composition, richness, and diversity) of oribatid mites (Oribatida) in five discrete, patchy substrates—dead wood, lichens, mosses, sod, and tree bark—and in the general leaf litter. Since oribatid mites are ubiquitous in all these microhabitats in temperate forests, the analysis of their community structure in the light of generalization and specialization might help us understand the ecological role of litter. We investigated whether litter acts as a specific microhabitat with the intrinsic characteristics that enable the “enigmatic” high diversity of oribatid mites (Habitat‐Hypothesis), if litter acts as a source from which oribatid mite species more or less randomly invade different associated microhabitat‐patches (Source‐Hypothesis), or if litter only connects patchily distributed microhabitats with specific species compositions (Connector‐Hypothesis). In total, 25,162 adult oribatid mite individuals were analyzed, most belonging to the derived group Brachypylina. Species richness, density, and diversity differed among microhabitats with highest values found in mosses and dead wood and lowest on tree bark. In general, specialization of oribatid mite species was low—highest on tree bark and in grass sod—but differed slightly among oribatid mite taxa (Enarthronota, Mixonomata, Nothrina, Brachypylina). The Connector‐ and Habitat‐Hypotheses can explain the distribution of most oribatid mite species but the Source‐Hypothesis explains the distribution patterns for only a few species.

Cyanogenesis denotes a chemical defensive strategy where hydrogen cyanide (HCN, hydrocyanic or prussic acid) is produced, stored, and released toward an attacking enemy. The high toxicity and volatility of HCN requires both chemical stabilization for storage and prevention of accidental self-poisoning. The few known cyanogenic animals are exclusively mandibulate arthropods (certain myriapods and insects) that store HCN as cyanogenic glycosides, lipids, or cyanohydrins. Here, we show that cyanogenesis has also evolved in the speciose Chelicerata. The oribatid mite Oribatula tibialis uses the cyanogenic aromatic ester mandelonitrile hexanoate (MNH) for HCN storage, which degrades via two different pathways, both of which release HCN. MNH is emitted from exocrine opisthonotal oil glands, which are potent organs for chemical defense in most oribatid mites.

Decomposition, vegetation regeneration, and biological control are essential ecosystem functions, and animals are involved in the underlying processes, such as dung removal, seed removal, herbivory, and predation. Despite evidence for declines of animal diversity and abundance due to climate change and land-use intensification, we poorly understand how animal-mediated processes respond to these global change drivers. We experimentally measured rates of four ecosystem processes in 134 grassland and 149 forest plots in

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Type and intensity of land‐use vary in space and time and strongly contribute to changes in richness and composition of species communities. In this study, we examined land snail communities in forests and grasslands in three regions of Germany. We aimed to quantify the extent to which snail density, diversity, and community composition in forests and grasslands are determined by (1) land‐use intensity, (2) abiotic drivers and (3) biotic substrates, and (4) whether these effects are consistent across regions. In total, we collected 15,607 snail individuals belonging to 71 species and analyzed both direct and indirect effects using structural equation modeling. Snail densities and their local diversity varied across regions and between forest and grassland habitats within a region albeit with contrasting trends. Community composition also differed among regions—more strongly in forests than in grasslands—and each habitat had unique species (18 in forests, 21 in grasslands). In general, the direct impact of land‐use on snail density, diversity, and community structure was on average nine (forests) and seven (grasslands) times lower than the impact of abiotic drivers and biotic substrates which both affected snail assemblages about equally. However, land‐use factors had indirect effects on snail responses through abiotic variables such as soil moisture and soil pH. Furthermore, land‐use factors also had indirect effects via changing biotic substrates, such as plant cover in grasslands and deadwood cover in forests. Our results show that land snails strongly respond to environmental gradients and add an important indicator taxon to the current evidence of land‐use impacts, highlighting the complexity of direct and indirect effects via biotic and abiotic drivers across regions in Central Europe.

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