Organic matter composition and the protist and nematode communities around anecic earthworm burrows

TY - JOUR

T1 - Organic matter composition and the protist and nematode communities around anecic earthworm burrows

AU - Andriuzzi, Walter S.

AU - Ngo, Phuong-Thi

AU - Geisen, Stefan

AU - Keith, Aidan M.

AU - Dumack, Kenneth

AU - Bolger, Thomas

AU - Bonkowski, Michael

AU - Brussaard, Lijbert

AU - Faber, Jack H.

AU - Chabbi, Abad

AU - Rumpel, Cornelia

AU - Schmidt, Olaf

N1 - 6024, TE; Data archiving: Data archived at Dataverse

PY - 2016

Y1 - 2016

N2 - By living in permanent burrows and incorporating organic detritus from the soil surface, anecic earthworms contribute to soil heterogeneity, but their impact is still under-studied in natural field conditions. We investigated the effects of the anecic earthworm Lumbricus centralis on fresh carbon (C) incorporation, soil organic matter composition, protists, and nematodes of a Cambisol under grassland. We used plant material labelled with stable isotope tracers to detect fresh C input around earthworm-occupied burrows or around burrows from which the earthworm had been removed. After 50 days, we sampled soil (0--10 cm depth) in concentric layers around the burrows, distinguishing between drilosphere (0--8 mm) and bulk soil (50--75 mm). L. centralis effectively incorporated fresh C into the drilosphere, and this shifted soil organic matter amount and chemistry: total soil sugar content was increased compared to unoccupied drilosphere and bulk soil, and the contribution of plant-derived sugars to soil organic matter was enhanced. Earthworms also shifted the spatial distribution of soil C towards the drilosphere. The total abundance of protists and nematodes was only slightly higher in earthworm-occupied drilosphere, but strong positive effects were found for some protist clades (e.g. Stenamoeba spp.). Additional data for the co-occurring anecic earthworm species Aporrectodea longa showed that it incorporated fresh C less than L. centralis, suggesting that the two species may have different effects on soil C distribution and organic matter quality.

AB - By living in permanent burrows and incorporating organic detritus from the soil surface, anecic earthworms contribute to soil heterogeneity, but their impact is still under-studied in natural field conditions. We investigated the effects of the anecic earthworm Lumbricus centralis on fresh carbon (C) incorporation, soil organic matter composition, protists, and nematodes of a Cambisol under grassland. We used plant material labelled with stable isotope tracers to detect fresh C input around earthworm-occupied burrows or around burrows from which the earthworm had been removed. After 50 days, we sampled soil (0--10 cm depth) in concentric layers around the burrows, distinguishing between drilosphere (0--8 mm) and bulk soil (50--75 mm). L. centralis effectively incorporated fresh C into the drilosphere, and this shifted soil organic matter amount and chemistry: total soil sugar content was increased compared to unoccupied drilosphere and bulk soil, and the contribution of plant-derived sugars to soil organic matter was enhanced. Earthworms also shifted the spatial distribution of soil C towards the drilosphere. The total abundance of protists and nematodes was only slightly higher in earthworm-occupied drilosphere, but strong positive effects were found for some protist clades (e.g. Stenamoeba spp.). Additional data for the co-occurring anecic earthworm species Aporrectodea longa showed that it incorporated fresh C less than L. centralis, suggesting that the two species may have different effects on soil C distribution and organic matter quality.

KW - international

UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10411/20809

U2 - 10.1007/s00374-015-1056-6

DO - 10.1007/s00374-015-1056-6

M3 - Article

SN - 1432-0789

VL - 52

SP - 91

EP - 100

JO - Biology and Fertility of Soils

JF - Biology and Fertility of Soils

IS - 1

ER -