Trophic structure and functional redundancy in soil communities

Setälä, Heikki; Berg, Matty P.; Jones, Tim

doi:10.1017/cbo9780511541926.014

Cited by 70 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…This is in agreement with Setälä et al (2005), who argue that the functional importance of individual groups is rather high at coarse (trophic group) level but low at species level, and that effects of species diversity on ecosystem functioning are most likely found in studies with a very low species richness and therefore a low functional redundancy. Nevertheless, in our study microarthropod diversity was found to be a sensitive and consistent indicator for land management.…”

Section: Microarthropod Diversitysupporting

confidence: 91%

An ecosystem approach to assess soil quality in organically and conventionally managed farms in Iceland and Austria

Leeuwen¹,

Sandén²,

Lair³

et al. 2015

SOIL

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Abstract. Intensive agricultural production can be an important driver for the loss of long-term soil quality. For this reason, the European Critical Zone Observatory (CZO) network adopted four pairs of agricultural CZO sites that differ in their management: conventional or organic. The CZO sites include two pairs of grassland farms in Iceland and two pairs of arable farms in Austria. Conventional fields differed from the organic fields in the use of artificial fertilisers and pesticides. Soils of these eight farms were analysed in terms of their physical, chemical, and biological properties, including soil aggregate size distribution, soil organic matter contents, abundance of soil microbes and soil fauna, and taxonomic diversity of soil microarthropods. In Icelandic grasslands, organically farmed soils had larger mean weight diameters of soil aggregates than the conventional farms, while there were no differences on the Austrian farms. Organic farming did not systematically influence organic matter contents or composition, nor soil carbon and nitrogen contents. Also, soil food web structures, in terms of presence of trophic groups of soil organisms, were highly similar among all farms, indicating a low sensitivity of trophic structure to land use or climate. However, soil organism biomass, especially of bacteria and nematodes, was consistently higher on organic farms than on conventional farms. Within the microarthropods, taxonomic diversity was systematically higher in the organic farms compared to the conventional farms. This difference was found across countries and farm, crop, and soil types. The results do not show systematic differences in physical and chemical properties between organic and conventional farms, but confirm that organic farming can enhance soil biomass and that microarthropod diversity is a sensitive and consistent indicator for land management.

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Section: Microarthropod Diversitysupporting

confidence: 91%

An ecosystem approach to assess soil quality in organically and conventionally managed farms in Iceland and Austria

Leeuwen¹,

Sandén²,

Lair³

et al. 2015

SOIL

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“…Horner- Devine and Bohannan, 2006;Barberan and Casamayor, 2010). This may be especially true in soils, where organisms are able to feed across multiple trophic levels, which is likely to promote taxa coexistence rather than competitive exclusion (Setälä et al, 2005). Alternatively, the spatial scale considered here may be too large for the detection of biotic interactions occurring at much lower scales (microhabitat).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylogenetic Clustering Reveals Selective Events Driving the Turnover of Bacterial Community in Alpine Tundra Soils

Shahnavaz

Zinger

Lavergne

et al. 2012

Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research

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“…The majority of soil fauna are generalists, capable of exploiting a variety of microbial resources within highly diverse and heterogeneous environments (Setälä et al, 2005). Indiscriminate feeding can have major consequences for fungal species richness.…”

Section: Fungal Community Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

Functional and ecological consequences of saprotrophic fungus–grazer interactions

2012

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Saprotrophic fungi are key regulators of nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems. They are the primary agents of plant litter decomposition and their hyphal networks, which grow throughout the soil-litter interface, represent highly dynamic channels through which nutrients are readily distributed. By ingesting hyphae and dispersing spores, soil invertebrates, including Arthropoda, Oligochaetae and Nematoda, influence fungal-mediated nutrient distribution within soil. Fungal physiological responses to grazing include changes to hydrolytic enzyme production and respiration rates. These directly affect nutrient mineralisation and the flux of CO 2 between terrestrial and atmospheric pools. Preferential grazing may also exert selective pressures on saprotrophic communities, driving shifts in fungal succession and community composition. These functional and ecological consequences of grazing are intrinsically linked, and influenced by invertebrate grazing intensity. High-intensity grazing often reduces fungal growth and activity, whereas low-intensity grazing can have stimulatory effects. Grazing intensity is directly related to invertebrate abundance, and varies dramatically between species and functional groups. Invertebrate diversity and community composition, therefore, represent key factors determining the functioning of saprotrophic fungal communities and the services they provide.

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Trophic structure and functional redundancy in soil communities

Cited by 70 publications

References 66 publications

An ecosystem approach to assess soil quality in organically and conventionally managed farms in Iceland and Austria

An ecosystem approach to assess soil quality in organically and conventionally managed farms in Iceland and Austria

Phylogenetic Clustering Reveals Selective Events Driving the Turnover of Bacterial Community in Alpine Tundra Soils

Functional and ecological consequences of saprotrophic fungus–grazer interactions

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