Predatory mites (Gamasina, Mesostigmata)

Koehler, Hartmut

doi:10.1016/b978-0-444-50019-9.50022-4

Cited by 20 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 52 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Microarthropods constitute a considerable and important part of soil fauna (Siepel and Maaskamp, 1994). Among the microarthropods, mites and Collembola are the most important groups in soil with overwhelming species richness and densities within the range of hundreds of thousands of individuals per m 2 (Koehler, 1999). As major predators of root pests, especially nematodes, mites are generally considered beneficial in soil (Walter and Proctor, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The dominant acarine soil predators are found among the mite taxa Mesostigmata (Gamasida) and Prostigmata (Ruf and Beck, 2005; Walter and Proctor, 2004). The majority of Gamasina, which are a subset of Mesostigmata, are mobile predators feeding on nematodes, Collembola, enchytraeids, insect larvae and mites (Koehler, 1999). As main predators among soil mesofauna, Gamasina have a crucial position in the soil food web contributing significantly to energy and matter turnover (Ruf and Beck, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As main predators among soil mesofauna, Gamasina have a crucial position in the soil food web contributing significantly to energy and matter turnover (Ruf and Beck, 2005). They have an indirect influence on overall ecosystem performance by affecting population growth of other organisms and are used as bioindicators due to their functional role, high species richness, high abundance and robustness to sampling and extraction (Koehler, 1999). Despite their importance, studies about the succession of Mesostigmata are rare.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Effects of habitat age and plant species on predatory mites (Acari, Mesostigmata) in grassy arable fallows in Eastern Austria

Wissuwa

Salamon

Frank

2012

Soil Biology and Biochemistry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Density, diversity and assemblage structure of Mesostigmata (cohorts Gamasina and Uropodina) were investigated in nine grassy arable fallows according to a factorial design with age class (2–3, 6–8, 12–15 years) and plant species (legume: Medicago sativa, herb: Taraxacum officinale, grass: Bromus sterilis) as factors. The response of Mesostigmata to habitat age and plant species was explored because this group belongs to the dominant acarine predators playing a crucial role in soil food webs and being important as biological control agents. To our knowledge, this combination of factors has never been studied before for Mesostigmata. A further rarely applied aspect of the present study is the micro-scale approach investigating the Mesostigmata assemblage of the soil associated with single plants. Four plots were randomly chosen at each fallow in May 2008. At each plot plant roots and the adjacent soil of five randomly selected plant individuals per plant species were dug out with steel cylinders for heat extraction of soil fauna and measurement of environmental parameters. In total, 83 mite taxa were identified, with 50 taxa being new to Austria. GLM analysis revealed a significant effect of plant species on mite density, with significantly more mites in B. sterilis than in T. officinale samples, and M. sativa samples being intermediate. This was in contrast to the assumption that the mite density is highest in M. sativa samples due to the propagation of plant quality effects to higher trophic levels. These results were probably caused by a higher amount of fine roots in grass samples leading to high densities of Collembola, which are preferred prey of predatory mites. Mite density did not significantly differ between the three age classes. A canonical analysis of principal coordinates (CAP) showed that the mite assemblage exhibited a weak yet significant separation between plant species, and a highly significant separation between age classes. Accordingly, different mite assemblages were found for the three age classes, while only few mite species were clearly associated with a single plant species. Finally, canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) revealed that the mite assemblage was best explained by soil organic carbon, total density of Collembola and water content.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Effects of habitat age and plant species on predatory mites (Acari, Mesostigmata) in grassy arable fallows in Eastern Austria

Wissuwa

Salamon

Frank

2012

Soil Biology and Biochemistry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A generalist predatory mite ( Hypoaspis aculeifer , mean body size: 0.6 mm)56 was used as the model predator (purchased from Schneckenprofi in Germany). Hypoaspis aculeifer are common soil dwelling predators and are common predators of Collembola57.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plant community composition determines the strength of top-down control in a soil food web motif

Thakur

Eisenhauer

2015

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Top-down control of prey by predators are magnified in productive ecosystems due to higher sustenance of prey communities. In soil micro-arthropod food webs, plant communities regulate the availability of basal resources like soil microbial biomass. Mixed plant communities are often associated with higher microbial biomass than monocultures. Therefore, top-down control is expected to be higher in soil food webs of mixed plant communities. Moreover, higher predator densities can increase the suppression of prey, which can induce interactive effects between predator densities and plant community composition on prey populations. Here, we tested the effects of predator density (predatory mites) on prey populations (Collembola) in monoculture and mixed plant communities. We hypothesized that top-down control would increase with predator density but only in the mixed plant community. Our results revealed two contrasting patterns of top-down control: stronger top-down control of prey communities in the mixed plant community, but weaker top-down control in plant monocultures in high predator density treatments. As expected, higher microbial community biomass in the mixed plant community sustained sufficiently high prey populations to support high predator density. Our results highlight the roles of plant community composition and predator densities in regulating top-down control of prey in soil food webs.

show abstract

“…Enchytraeids affect soil formation by making soil aggregate and enhance nutrient cycling by interacting with microbes (Schrader et al 1997;Briones et al 1998). Microarthropods (Oribatida, Mesostigmata, Prostigmata, and Collembola) include a variety of feeding guilds (e.g., detritivores, microbivores) that interact with microorganisms and enhance decomposition and nutrient cycling (e.g., Kaneda and Kaneko 2011;Wickings and Grandy 2011), whereas predatory mites, as part of the predaceous guild in this group, control nematode and Collembola abundance (Koehler 1999). Collembola cause an increase in the abundance of natural enemies, such as carabid beetles, which can help control pest insect abundance (Prasifka et al 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Significance of litter layer in enhancing mesofaunal abundance and microbial biomass nitrogen in sweet corn-white clover living mulch systems

Kaneda

Miura

Yamashita

et al. 2012

Soil Science and Plant Nutrition

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Living mulch is a type of sustainable farming system that consists of cover crops planted either before or with a main crop; a living mulch is maintained as a living ground cover throughout the growing season of the main crop. Microbial biomass and abundance of mesofauna (microarthropods and enchytraeids) are important soil biological parameters in relation to soil function, plant productivity, and nutrient cycling; however, the effects of living mulch on these parameters are not fully understood. In this study we examined the effects of living mulch treatment with nitrogen fertilizer (0, 40, 160, or 200 kg ha À1 ) on the abundance of soil microarthropods (Oribatida, Mesostigmata, Prostigmata, and Collembola) and the effects of living mulch treatment on the dynamics of the soil biota (mesofauna, microarthropods, enchytraeids, and microbial biomass nitrogen) from spring to autumn. Our results showed that living mulch treatment significantly (p < 0.05) increased the grain weight of the main crop in both experiments. Generally, living mulch treatment had a positive effect on the abundance of mesofauna and microbial biomass nitrogen, despite pesticide usage. Nitrogen levels did not affect the number of microarthropods. The litter layer in living mulch significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced microbial biomass nitrogen and the abundance of Oribatida, Prostigmata, and Collembola. We conclude that living mulch enhances mesofaunal abundance and microbial biomass nitrogen and that the production of a litter layer by living mulch is one of the major mechanisms for this enhancement.

show abstract

Predatory mites (Gamasina, Mesostigmata)

Cited by 20 publications

References 52 publications

Effects of habitat age and plant species on predatory mites (Acari, Mesostigmata) in grassy arable fallows in Eastern Austria

Effects of habitat age and plant species on predatory mites (Acari, Mesostigmata) in grassy arable fallows in Eastern Austria

Plant community composition determines the strength of top-down control in a soil food web motif

Significance of litter layer in enhancing mesofaunal abundance and microbial biomass nitrogen in sweet corn-white clover living mulch systems

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About