Mites (Oribatida and Mesostigmata) and vegetation as complementary bioindicators in peatlands

Seniczak, Anna; Seniczak, Stanisław; Iturrondobeitia, Juan Carlos; Gwiazdowicz, Dariusz J.; Waldon‐Rudzionek, Barbara; Flatberg, Kjell Ivar; Bolger, Thomas

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158335

Cited by 7 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Oribatid mites can live in different parts of Sphagnum : on drier apical parts; in more basal parts; or in the spaces between Sphagnum leaves. Oribatida are closely dependent on microhabitat conditions, most notably the moisture level (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ) or the genus of Sphagnum present (Minor et al, 2016 ; Seniczak, Seniczak, Iturrondobeitia, et al, 2020 ; Seniczak, Seniczak, Schwarzfeld, et al, 2020 ), but also water chemistry (Seniczak et al, 2022 ). Therefore, any changes in peatlands, either due to climate change or human activities that affect water level or water chemistry, have strong impacts on the oribatid communities (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ; Markkula 1981 , 1982 ; Seniczak et al, 2016 ; Seniczak et al, 2022 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Oribatida are closely dependent on microhabitat conditions, most notably the moisture level (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ) or the genus of Sphagnum present (Minor et al, 2016 ; Seniczak, Seniczak, Iturrondobeitia, et al, 2020 ; Seniczak, Seniczak, Schwarzfeld, et al, 2020 ), but also water chemistry (Seniczak et al, 2022 ). Therefore, any changes in peatlands, either due to climate change or human activities that affect water level or water chemistry, have strong impacts on the oribatid communities (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ; Markkula 1981 , 1982 ; Seniczak et al, 2016 ; Seniczak et al, 2022 ). Dramatic changes in oribatid communities can be observed very quickly, even between different seasons (Seniczak, Seniczak, Graczyk, et al, 2019 ), so Oribatida seem to be very good bioindicators for short‐term changes in peatlands (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ; Seniczak et al, 2022 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, any changes in peatlands, either due to climate change or human activities that affect water level or water chemistry, have strong impacts on the oribatid communities (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ; Markkula 1981 , 1982 ; Seniczak et al, 2016 ; Seniczak et al, 2022 ). Dramatic changes in oribatid communities can be observed very quickly, even between different seasons (Seniczak, Seniczak, Graczyk, et al, 2019 ), so Oribatida seem to be very good bioindicators for short‐term changes in peatlands (Lehmitz et al, 2020 ; Seniczak et al, 2022 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mire communities include habitat‐specific Mesostigmata species that makes these habitats particularly important in terms of biodiversity (Kaczmarek et al, 2006 , 2011 ; Kaczmarek & Marquardt, 2007 , 2008 ; Marquardt & Kaczmarek, 2009 ; Salmane, 2006 , 2009 ; Salmane & Spuņģis, 2015 ; Skorupski et al, 2008 ). The bioindicative reaction of Mesostigmata is less pronounced, that is, in contrast to Oribatida, none of the environmental variables were significantly associated with variation in the Mesostigmata communities, but the Mesostigmata results often support those of Oribatida (e.g., high dominance of aquatic species or a shift to generalists is often observed in both groups) (Seniczak et al, 2022 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Inclusion of juvenile stages improves diversity assessment and adds to our understanding of mite ecology – A case study from mires in Norway

Seniczak

Iturrondobeitia

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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Arachnid orders, Mesostigmata, Trombidiformes, and Sarcoptiformes, commonly known as ‘mites’, are abundant in mires, both as adults and as juveniles. However, due to the challenges of identification, the juvenile forms are often excluded from analyses. This is the first study in mires that included all three mite orders identified to the species level, including juvenile instars. We aimed to compare how diversity and the response to ecological variables differed if only the adults (ad) vs. the total number of specimens (ad+juv) are considered. Samples of 20 Sphagnum species (five subgenera) were collected and mites were extracted using Berlese funnels. Overall, nearly 60,000 mites were analyzed; of these Mesostigmata made up 1.87% of the total, Trombidiformes −0.27%, and Sarcoptiformes −97.86%. The study revealed 154 species (33 Mesostigmata, 24 Trombidiformes, and 97 Sarcoptiformes), the highest diversity of mites ever reported from mires. The inclusion of juveniles increased observed species richness by 6%, with 10 species (one Mesostigmata, six Trombidiformes, and three Sarcoptiformes) represented only by juvenile forms. Seventeen species are new to Norway (four Mesostigmata, one Sarcoptiformes, and 12 Trombidiformes, including five undescribed species of Stigmaeidae and Cunaxidae). Four of these were represented in the samples only by juveniles. Including the juveniles explained a greater amount of the variability of Trombidiformes (explanatory variables account for 23.60% for ad, and 73.74% for ad+juv) and Mesostigmata (29.23% − ad, 52.91% − ad+juv), but had less of an impact for Sarcoptiformes (38.48% − ad, 39.26% − ad+juv). Locality, Sphagnum subgenus and species, wetness, and trophic state significantly affected the mite communities and should be taken into consideration when studying mires. Since juvenile stages contribute significantly to mite diversity in mires, they should also be included in mite studies in other habitats.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Inclusion of juvenile stages improves diversity assessment and adds to our understanding of mite ecology – A case study from mires in Norway

Seniczak

Iturrondobeitia

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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“…Gamasida, which are known to prey on other mites, were particularly impacted [57,58]. Oribatida mites, Gamasida mites, and Collembola are widely used as indicators of moisture levels in soil [59][60][61]. Furthermore, Chauvat et al [62] found that hemiedaphic Collembola, adapted to living in the transitional zone between the surface layer and deeper horizons, were the group most affected by soil properties during ecological succession and are commonly used as indicators of soil disturbance [63].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coexistence and Succession of Spontaneous and Planted Vegetation on Extensive Mediterranean Green Roofs: Impacts on Soil, Seed Banks, and Mesofauna

Vidaller,

Jouet,

Van Mechelen

et al. 2023

Land

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Extensive green roofs are well known to improve the urban environment, but in the Mediterranean regions, dry climatic conditions pose the problem of their sustainability when no irrigation is applied. After planting or sowing in 2012, 18 local Mediterranean plant species on different types of exposure and substrate in a non-irrigated extensive green roof in Avignon (South-Eastern France), the physico-chemical characteristics of the soil, winter and spring soil seed banks, soil mesofauna and initially sown, planted, or spontaneous vegetation expressed on the surface were studied from 2013 to 2020. In 2020, significant differences related to the exposure conditions (shade/sun) and, to a lesser extent, to the depth of substrate used (5 cm/5 cm or 10 cm with a water retention layer) were found. The deeper plots in the shade have significantly higher soil fertility, cover, and vegetation height. However, the plots in the sun have higher moss cover, planted or sowed vegetation abundance, and springtail abundance. By 2020, more than half of the initially sown species had disappeared, except for several planted perennials and short-cycle annual species. On the other hand, a significant increase in the species richness of spontaneously established species was measured over time. In the absence of a permanent and transient seed bank for the sowed and spontaneous species, the plant community is then mostly dependent on species flows via the local surrounding seed rain. Planting perennial species (Sedum spp., Iris lutescens), followed by spontaneous colonization of species present in the vicinity of the roof would then represent a more efficient strategy for the persistence of extensive non-irrigated green roofs in Mediterranean environments than sowing a species-rich local Mediterranean seed mixture dominated by annual species.

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Chironomid community compositions and their environmental implications in the Dajiuhu Wetland, Shennongjia, China

Shengman,

Yanmin,

Guilin

et al. 2024

Journal of Lake Sciences

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Mites (Oribatida and Mesostigmata) and vegetation as complementary bioindicators in peatlands

Cited by 7 publications

References 46 publications

Inclusion of juvenile stages improves diversity assessment and adds to our understanding of mite ecology – A case study from mires in Norway

Inclusion of juvenile stages improves diversity assessment and adds to our understanding of mite ecology – A case study from mires in Norway

Coexistence and Succession of Spontaneous and Planted Vegetation on Extensive Mediterranean Green Roofs: Impacts on Soil, Seed Banks, and Mesofauna

Chironomid community compositions and their environmental implications in the Dajiuhu Wetland, Shennongjia, China

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