Book ChapterDOI
How do earthworms affect microfloral and faunal community diversity
TLDR
Much is still unknown regarding the interactions of earthworm of different ecological categories on the diversity and function of microfloral and faunal communities, and much more interdisciplinary research is needed to assess the potential role of earthworms in regulating the diversity ofmicroflora and fauna in soil systems.Abstract:
Much of the work regarding earthworm effects on other organisms has focused on the functional significance of microbial-earthworm interactions, and little is known on the effects of earthworms on microfloral and faunal diversity. Earthworms can affect soil microflora and fauna populations directly and indirectly by three main mechanisms: (1) comminution, burrowing and casting; (2) grazing; (3) dispersal. These activities change the soil's physico-chemical and biological status and may cause drastic shifts in the density, diversity, structure and activity of microbial and faunal communities within the drilosphere. Certain organisms and species may be enhanced, reduced or not be affected at all depending on their ability to adapt to the particular conditions of different earthworm drilospheres. A large host of factors (including CaCO3, enzymes, mucus and antimicrobial substances) influence the ability of preferentially or randomly ingested organisms to survive (or not) passage through the earthworm gut, and their resultant capacity to recover and proliferate (or not) in earthworm casts. Small organisms, particularly microflora and microfauna, with limited ability to move within the soil, may benefit from the (comparatively) long ranging movements of earthworms. Microflora and smaller fauna appear to be particularly sensitive to earthworm activities, and priming effects enhancing nutrient release, particularly in casts, are common. Larger fauna such as microarthropods, enchytraeids and Isopods may be enhanced under some conditions (e.g., in earthworm middens), but in other cases earthworm activity may lead to a decrease in their populations due to competition for food (microbes and organic materials), and spatial and temporal changes in food abundance. Nevertheless, considering the presently available data, the beneficial interactions of earthworms and microflora and fauna appear to far outweigh the potential negative effects. However, much is still unknown regarding the interactions of earthworms of different ecological categories on the diversity and function of microfloral and faunal communities, and much more interdisciplinary research is needed to assess the potential role of earthworms in regulating the diversity of microflora and fauna in soil systems and the potentially beneficial or harmful effects this regulation may have on ecosystem function and plant growth in different ecosystems.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
A history of research on the link between (micro)aggregates, soil biota, and soil organic matter dynamics
TL;DR: In this article, Tisdall and Oades [J. Soil Sci. 62 (1982) 141] coined the aggregate hierarchy concept describing a spatial scale dependence of mechanisms involved in micro- and macroaggregate formation.
Journal ArticleDOI
Priming effects : interactions between living and dead organic matter
TL;DR: In this paper, a re-evaluation of our 10-year old paper on priming effects is presented, and the most important needs for future research are identified and evaluated.
Journal ArticleDOI
Biodiversity and Litter Decomposition in Terrestrial Ecosystems
TL;DR: Empirical and theoretical evidence is explored for the functional significance of plant-litter diversity and the extraordinary high diversity of decomposer organisms in the process of litter decomposition and the consequences for biogeochemical cycles.
Priming effects: interactions between living and dead organic matter
TL;DR: In this paper, a re-evaluation of our 10-year old paper on priming effects is presented, and the most important needs for future research are identified and evaluated.
Journal ArticleDOI
A review of earthworm impact on soil function and ecosystem services
Manuel Blouin,Mark E. Hodson,E.A. Delgado,Geoff H. Baker,Lijbert Brussaard,Kevin R. Butt,Jun Dai,L. Dendooven,Guénola Pérès,Jérôme E. Tondoh,Daniel Cluzeau,Jean-Jacques Brun +11 more
TL;DR: The contribution of earthworms to ecosystem services through pedogenesis, development of soil structure, water regulation, nutrient cycling, primary production, climate regulation, pollution remediation and cultural services is discussed in this article.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Interactions of Bacteria, Fungi, and their Nematode Grazers: Effects on Nutrient Cycling and Plant Growth
TL;DR: The results support claims in the literature that microbial grazers may perform important regulatory functions at critical times in the growth of plants and support a conceptual model proposed in which microfloral grazers were considered as separate state variables.
Book
The formation of vegetable mould through the action of worms, with observations on their habits
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the role of worms in the denudation of the land and the amount of fine earth brought up by worms to the surface of the earth.
Journal ArticleDOI
Microbial and Faunal Interactions and Effects on Litter Nitrogen and Decomposition in Agroecosystems
Michael H. Beare,Robert W. Parmelee,Paul F. Hendrix,Weixin Cheng,David C. Coleman,D. A. Crossley +5 more
TL;DR: The results suggest that litter placement can strongly influence the com- position of decomposer communities and that the resulting trophic relationships are important to determining the rates and timing of plant litter decomposition and N dynamics.