Quantifying surface and subsurface cast production by earthworms under controlled laboratory conditions

Whalen, Joann K.; Sampedro, Luís; Waheed, Tahir

doi:10.1007/s00374-003-0715-1

Cited by 43 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…earthworm FW day À1 , respectively (Whalen et al 2004). Therefore the casting rate of Metaphire hilgendorfi was comparable to other studies and occupied the higher end of values.…”

supporting

confidence: 85%

“…Earthworm casting rate was observed to be proportional to earthworm weight (Callaham and Hendrix 1998). The casting rate (feeding rate) is also influenced by the quality of food and the temperature, and differs among species (Flegel et al 1998;Whalen et al 2004). The C/N ratio of the food (11-26) was negatively correlated with the casting rate of Dendrobaena octaedra (0.25-0.84 g DW g À1 earthworm FW day…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whalen et al (2004) showed that the maximum cast production rate of Apporectodea spp. and Lumbricus spp.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mineral nitrogen dynamics in the casts of epigeic earthworms (Metaphire hilgendorfi: Megascolecidae)

Kawaguchi

Kyoshima

Kaneko

2011

Soil Science and Plant Nutrition

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Quantitative evaluation of earthworm activity and temporal dynamics of cast stability are necessary to understand the importance of nutrient cycling in soil ecosystem. To address how earthworm activity influences soil aggregation and mineral nitrogen (N), cast production rate of Metaphire hilgendorfi and N mineralization rate in the casts were monitored for 56 days under laboratory conditions. The casting rate was 0.79 g dry weight (DW) g À1 earthworm fresh weight (FW) day À1 and 92% of the casts were water-stable within 24 h of excretion. The casts within three days of excretion contained 333.8 mg ammonium-nitrogen (NH , which were 69.8 and 0.95 times higher than those of the soil, respectively. M. hilgendorfi excreted 270 mg N g À1 earthworm FW day À1 through their casting activity. Soil respiration was active in the first two weeks, whereas dissolved organic carbon in casts did not change during aging. Cast NH þ 4 -N was nitrified rapidly with subsequent decrease in pH value from 6.5 to 5. Nitrification stopped at 28 days when half of the NH þ 4 -N was nitrified. Gentle crushing of casts did not significantly influence respiration nor N mineralization. Therefore microbial access to neither carbon nor N was responsible for the nitrification cessation, but pH appeared to contribute. Dynamic changes in mineral N was observed during cast aging.

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“…earthworm FW day À1 , respectively (Whalen et al 2004). Therefore the casting rate of Metaphire hilgendorfi was comparable to other studies and occupied the higher end of values.…”

supporting

confidence: 85%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mineral nitrogen dynamics in the casts of epigeic earthworms (Metaphire hilgendorfi: Megascolecidae)

Kawaguchi

Kyoshima

Kaneko

2011

Soil Science and Plant Nutrition

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“…Until now studies have focussed on the importance of earthworm casts for formation of soil structure (Bronick and Lal, 2005;Larink et al, 2001), or nutrient availability (Asawalam, 2006;Kuczak et al, 2006;Le Bayon and Binet, 2006;Whalen et al, 2004). To our knowledge there are no studies establishing correlations between surface castings and earthworm performance.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Occasional reduced tillage in organic farming can promote earthworm performance and resource efficiency

Moos¹,

Schrader²,

Paulsen³

et al. 2016

Applied Soil Ecology

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“…The protection of SOM from biological degradation in surface casts [18,19] has a special significance for soils with high mineralization rates and low contents in SOM, as is the case for the soils of the Ebro Valley. In addition, soils rich in calcium carbonate also contribute to the persistence of casts over longer time periods and thus to long-time SOM protection.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Casting Activity ofScherotheca gigasin No-Till Mediterranean Soils: Role in Organic Matter Incorporation and Influence of Aridity

Bescansa

Virto

Fernández‐Ugalde

et al. 2010

Applied and Environmental Soil Science

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The behaviour of earthworms, their role in organic matter incorporation into the soil, and the influence of aridity in such processes in arid and semiarid regions have scarcely been studied. In this study, physico-chemical analyses of the casts and the surrounding no-till agricultural soils of three experimental sites representing an aridity gradient in Navarre (NW Spain) were done. The casts were formed by the activity of the only anecic species, Scherotheca gigas (Dugès, 1828), ubiquitous in no-till soils in this region. We observed a significant depletion of clay and higher concentration of total organic C and labile C in the form of particulate organic matter (POM) in the casts as compared to the surrounding soil, suggesting selective ingestion of soil by S. gigas. This, together with the observation of increased concentration in POM with increasing aridity, suggests a major role of this species in the observed progressive gains of organic C stocks in no-till soils in the region.

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Quantifying surface and subsurface cast production by earthworms under controlled laboratory conditions

Cited by 43 publications

References 15 publications

Mineral nitrogen dynamics in the casts of epigeic earthworms (Metaphire hilgendorfi: Megascolecidae)

Mineral nitrogen dynamics in the casts of epigeic earthworms (Metaphire hilgendorfi: Megascolecidae)

Occasional reduced tillage in organic farming can promote earthworm performance and resource efficiency

Casting Activity ofScherotheca gigasin No-Till Mediterranean Soils: Role in Organic Matter Incorporation and Influence of Aridity

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