Acarine (mite) communities colonizing rehabilitated bauxite mine pits in the jarrah forest of Western Australia

Cuccovia, Alex; Kinnear, Adrianne

doi:10.7882/rzsnsw.1999.011

Cited by 9 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Mites Another soil and litter layer group, which includes both detritus‐feeding and predatory forms, is the Acarina or mites. The cryptostigmatid species are the predominant detritus feeders (Table 4) (Cuccovia & Kinnear 1999). This group was numerically dominant in most of Alcoa’s restored plots and cryptostigmatid density was significantly correlated with post‐mining age (Table 4).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, richness in the oldest pit was still well below that of the forest control. Increased density in this group appears also to be associated with increases in the canopy and litter cover (Cuccovia & Kinnear 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Species richness of mites, and mean density within four acarine orders, for soil samples taken from the top 10 cm in four restored mine pits and one forest control (adapted fromCuccovia & Kinnear 1999).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Invertebrates and the Restoration of a Forest Ecosystem: 30 Years of Research following Bauxite Mining in Western Australia

Majer

Brennan²,

Moir

2007

Restoration Ecology

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Restoration needs to consider more than just soils and plants. The role of terrestrial invertebrates in the restoration of Alcoa's bauxite mines in the Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest of Western Australia has been the subject of over 20 individual studies. Projects range from arthropods in soil and leaf litter, to the understorey vegetation, and the tree canopy. Moreover, projects span a range of trophic groups, including decomposers (e.g., springtails and termites), predators (e.g., ants and spiders), and herbivores (e.g., true bugs and ants preying on seeds). Elucidation of recolonization trajectories uses both spacefor-time substitutions and long-term regular sampling. Importantly, many studies are at species level rather than coarser taxonomic ranks. This paper provides an historical account and an integrated review of this research. The role of ants as seed predators and as indicators of ecosystem health is described. Successional data for other groups, when measured by species richness (ants, spiders, and hemipterans) and composition (ants and spiders), show their reassembly trajectories tracking toward unmined reference areas. Hemipteran species composition tracks the vegetation reassembly trajectory but not toward unmined reference areas. Studies also have revealed optimal sampling methods for surveying invertebrates and their rich biodiversity in southwestern Australia. In restored mine pits burnt to reduce fuel loads, the response of spiders to this additional disturbance was retrogression/alteration of the post-mining trajectory. Finally, attention is drawn to research areas receiving limited scrutiny to date, such as the contribution of terrestrial invertebrates to ecosystem function and taxonomic groups not yet studied.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Invertebrates and the Restoration of a Forest Ecosystem: 30 Years of Research following Bauxite Mining in Western Australia

Majer

Brennan²,

Moir

2007

Restoration Ecology

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“…This difference reflects their preferred habitat of litter and soil rather than logs, but could also relate to their small size which allows them to pass through the mesh and hence yielded lower capture rates in this study. In a previous study in rehabilitated bauxite mines in the jarrah forest, Cuccovia and Kinnear (1999) found a steady increase in litter mite abundance and species richness from two-year-old through to 20-year-old sites. Unmined forest sites also had higher abundance and richness.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Arthropods in coarse woody debris in jarrah forest and rehabilitated bauxite mines in Western Australia

et al. 2010

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Abstract• Coarse woody debris (CWD) is returned to Alcoa's rehabilitated mined areas in the jarrah forest as potential vertebrate fauna habitat, however, its value for invertebrate fauna has not been investigated. We sought to determine if CWD in rehabilitated areas supported a similar arthropod fauna to that on fallen logs in the adjacent unmined jarrah forest.• Using emergence tents, sampling from logs in 5-year old and 15-year old rehabilitated forest, and in unmined forest, yielded 2 266 specimens from 187 taxa. Collembola (43% of total) and Acarina (32%) were the most abundant groups, followed by Diptera (11%), Araneae (4%) and Coleoptera (3%).• There were no significant differences in either taxa richness or overall abundance among the three forest types. However, community composition varied significantly. Species richness from the Araneida, Coleoptera and Diptera was highest in the 5-year old rehabilitated forest, while Collembola and Acarina were better represented in the unmined forest; this was related to changes in the environment surrounding the logs as rehabilitated forest develops, and to log condition. The composition of arthropods on logs in the 15-year old rehabilitated forest was intermediate, indicating a trend of increasing similarity to the unmined forest in arthropod fauna as the rehabilitated forest ages.• We suggest that over longer time periods, CWD in rehabilitated forest will support arthropod communities similar to those found in unmined forest. Future work should determine if returning logs to mined areas facilitates the return of CWD-dependent taxa. Mots-clés :débris ligneux grossiers / mine de bauxite / Diptera / Araneae / Coleoptera Résumé -Les arthropodes dans les débris ligneux grossiers de la forêt de jarrah et dans les mines de bauxite réhabilitées en Australie occidentale.• Les débris ligneux grossiers (CWD) sont retournés dans les zones de mines réhabilitées à Alcoa dans la forêt de jarrah comme habitat potentiel de la faune des vertébrés, cependant sa valeur pour la faune invertébrée n'a pas été étudiée. Nous avons cherché à déterminer si les CWD en zones réhabilitées soutenait une faune semblable à celle des arthropodes des arbres abattus dans la forêt adjacente de jarrah.• L'utilisation de tentes d'émergence et l'échantillonnage à partir de billes de 5 et 15 ans dans la forêt réhabilitée et dans la forêt sans mine, a fourni 2 266 spécimens de 187 taxons. Collembola (43 % du total) et Acarina (32 %) ont été les groupes les plus abondants, suivis par Diptera (11 %), Araneae (4 %) et Coleoptera (3 %).• Il n'y avait pas de différences significatives dans la richesse ou l'abondance chez l'un ou l'autre des taxa entre les trois types de forêts. Toutefois, la composition de la communauté a varié de façon significative. La richesse des espèces de Araneida, Coleoptera et Diptera a été la plus élevée dans la forêt réhabilitée âgée de 5-ans, tandis que Collembola et Acarina étaient mieux représentés dans la forêt sans mine ; ce qui a trait aux changements de l'environnement entoura...

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“…For example, high numbers of oribatid mites (including mites in the Family Phthiracaridae), which are important and characteristic soil and litter decomposers (Coleman et al 2004), were recovered from fine wood samples in both plots. In a similar study of the mite fauna in restored jarrah forest, these oribatid mites were not found until 20 years after initial restoration, notably in sites with dense litter build up (Cuccovia & Kinnear 1999). Other groups found only in wood treatment plots (Diplopoda, Dermaptera and Blattidae) are generally associated with decomposing wood and litter, on which they feed, while Opiliones and Myrmeleontidae larvae are predaceous upon invertebrates that dwell in litter and wood.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Preliminary trial of woody debris addition on the return of invertebrates to restored bauxite mines in the jarrah forest of Western Australia

Lythe

Majer²,

Stokes

2017

Eco Management Restoration

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Summary Woody debris is an important component of forest ecosystems, but its use in mine site restoration has been limited and it can be slow to build up naturally. A new technique of spreading snipped wood waste onto restored mine pits prior to seeding has been subjected to a preliminary trial at Alcoa's Huntly mine site, in the northern jarrah forest of south‐western Western Australia. We examined whether the application of snipped wood during restoration encourages the return of ground‐ and litter‐dwelling invertebrates without negatively suppressing plant establishment. Invertebrates were sampled across three seasons from experimental plots treated with 0 t/ha (control), 100 t/ha or 300 t/ha snipped wood waste. Invertebrate communities in treatment plots comprised higher numbers and diversity of wood and litter decomposers such as mites, Diplopoda, Dermaptera and Blattodea than control plots. Plant responses were variable, with wood treatment resulting in lower tree and overall plant density but having no effects on plant species richness or plant cover. Wood treatment plots were associated with higher soil nitrogen than controls. We hypothesise that the use of a fine wood treatment at the lowest rate of 100 t/ha (approximately 30% wood cover) is likely to enhance the diversity and abundance of invertebrates in restored areas, with minimal effect on plant establishment. Encouraging a diverse invertebrate fauna to recolonise restoration should help speed up succession and ecosystem functions such as decomposition and nutrient cycling, and more quickly return the land to previous ecosystem values.

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Acarine (mite) communities colonizing rehabilitated bauxite mine pits in the jarrah forest of Western Australia

Cited by 9 publications

References 3 publications

Invertebrates and the Restoration of a Forest Ecosystem: 30 Years of Research following Bauxite Mining in Western Australia

Invertebrates and the Restoration of a Forest Ecosystem: 30 Years of Research following Bauxite Mining in Western Australia

Arthropods in coarse woody debris in jarrah forest and rehabilitated bauxite mines in Western Australia

Preliminary trial of woody debris addition on the return of invertebrates to restored bauxite mines in the jarrah forest of Western Australia

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