Mollusca

Newell, P. F.

doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-395699-6.50017-1

Cited by 10 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 44 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Some Milax, Limax, Deroceras, and Arion spp. are herbivorous, other molluscs prefer senescent and dead plant material, while others feed mainly on fungi and lichens (Taylor, 1894(Taylor, -1914Newell, 1967;Pallant, 1972;Lutman, 1977). Deroceras reticulatum (Mull), often the dominant species in grassland, feeds mainly on grass leaves (Pallant, 1972;Lutman, 1977), while Cephea nemoralis (L.), a common grassland snail, feeds on most plant materials but prefers dead and senescent herbs (Richardson, 1975;Williamson and Cameron, 1976).…”

Section: Molluscamentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Slugs and snails are widely distributed in moist temperate grasslands, with highest populations occurring in wet soils (Newell, 1967;Lutman, 1977). Population estimates are few; these range from 20 to 60 slugs m~^ in damp grassland (South, 1965;Munnelly, 1970;Lutman, 1977) while 1-20 snails m"^ may be typical for open grassland in Britain (Mason, 1974).…”

Section: Molluscamentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The invertebrate fauna of grassland and its influence on productivity. 1. The composition of the fauna

Curry

1987

Grass and Forage Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Section: Molluscamentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Molluscamentioning

confidence: 99%

The invertebrate fauna of grassland and its influence on productivity. 1. The composition of the fauna

Curry

1987

Grass and Forage Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Invertebrates tend to be less important (Mittelbach and Gross 1984;Hulme 1994), though Reader and Beisner (1991) found that ants, but not rodents or birds, were significant seed predators at a site similar to ours and only 75 km distant. Slugs and snails (Newell 1967;Crawley 1997), and winged insects including Carabid beetles (Kjellson 1985) and…”

Section: Predator Identitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Post-dispersal losses to seed predators: an experimental comparison of native and exotic old field plants

Blaney¹,

Kotanen²

2001

Can. J. Bot.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Invasions by exotic plants may be more likely if exotics have low rates of attack by natural enemies, including post-dispersal seed predators (granivores). We investigated this idea with a field experiment conducted near Newmarket, Ontario, in which we experimentally excluded vertebrate and terrestrial insect seed predators from seeds of 43 native and exotic old-field plants. Protection from vertebrates significantly increased recovery of seeds; vertebrate exclusion produced higher recovery than controls for 30 of the experimental species, increasing overall seed recovery from 38.2 to 45.6%. Losses to vertebrates varied among species, significantly increasing with seed mass. In contrast, insect exclusion did not significantly improve seed recovery. There was no evidence that aliens benefitted from a reduced rate of post-dispersal seed predation. The impacts of seed predators did not differ significantly between natives and exotics, which instead showed very similar responses to predator exclusion treatments. These results indicate that while vertebrate granivores had important impacts, especially on large-seeded species, exotics did not generally benefit from reduced rates of seed predation. Instead, differences between natives and exotics were small compared with interspecific variation within these groups.Key words: aliens, exotics, granivores, invaders, old fields, seed predators.

show abstract

“…The major effect of molluscs on decomposition is presumed to be enhancement of microbial activity (Newell , Schaefer ). Estimates from temperate forests with much higher densities of molluscs than in our study indicate that terrestrial molluscs only consume between 0.35 and 1.5 percent of the annual litter input (Mason , Jennings & Barkham ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Terrestrial Molluscs on Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Release in a Hawaiian Rain Forest

2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The roles of terrestrial molluscs in many important ecosystem processes are largely unknown, particularly in tropical forests. It has been suggested from studies in temperate forests that snails/slugs contribute to litter decomposition directly (by their own metabolism) and/or indirectly (by habitat modification enhancing micro‐arthropod or microbial activity). Forty‐two mesocosms were established at seven Hawaiian rain forest sites to examine the role of the five most abundant snail/slug species: the native Succinea cepulla, and the non‐native Arion intermedius, Deroceras laeve, Oxychilus alliarius, and Limax maximus. Controls had no snails/slugs. To assess the contribution of each mollusc species separately, decomposition experiments were conducted in mesocosms containing litter bags and manipulated field densities of the mollusc species. Presence of molluscs increased litter decomposition rates, which were strongly correlated with mollusc biomass. While rates of release of some nutrients (C, K, Mg, and Mn) differed among treatments, multivariate analyses indicated that the different mollusc species influenced nutrient release in a similar way. No increases in smaller invertebrate abundances were observed in treatments containing molluscs, indicating that molluscs do not facilitate smaller invertebrate recruitment and probably influence these ecosystem processes primarily by microbe facilitation. If a major functional role of terrestrial molluscs is to facilitate microbial growth, then maintaining adequate mollusc biomass may be essential for maintaining healthy functioning ecosystems.

show abstract

Mollusca

Cited by 10 publications

References 44 publications

The invertebrate fauna of grassland and its influence on productivity. 1. The composition of the fauna

The invertebrate fauna of grassland and its influence on productivity. 1. The composition of the fauna

Post-dispersal losses to seed predators: an experimental comparison of native and exotic old field plants

Influence of Terrestrial Molluscs on Litter Decomposition and Nutrient Release in a Hawaiian Rain Forest

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About