De Menezes, Alexandre B., Prendergast-Miller, Miranda Tendai orcid.org/0000-0002-3219-6250, Macdonald, Lynne M. et al. (6 more authors) (2018) Earthworm-induced shifts in microbial diversity in soils with rare versus established invasive earthworm populations. FEMS MICROBIOLOGY ECOLOGY. ISSN 0168-6496
Abstract
European earthworms have colonised many parts of Australia, although their impact on soil microbial communities remains largely uncharacterised. An experiment was conducted to contrast the responses to Aporrectodea trapezoides introduction between soils from sites with established (Talmo, 64 A. trapezoides m-2) and rare (Glenrock, 0.6 A. trapezoides m-2) A. trapezoides populations. Our hypothesis was that earthworm introduction would lead to similar changes in bacterial communities in both soils. The effects of earthworm introduction (earthworm activity and cadaver decomposition) did not lead to a convergence of bacterial community composition between the two soils. However, in both soils, the Firmicutes decreased in abundance and a common set of bacteria responded positively to earthworms. The increase in the abundance of Flavobacterium, Chitinophagaceae, Rhodocyclaceae and Sphingobacteriales were consistent with previous studies. Evidence for possible soil resistance to earthworms was observed, with lower earthworm survival in Glenrock microcosms coinciding with A. trapezoides rarity in this site, lower soil organic matter and clay content and differences in the diversity and abundance of potential earthworm mutualist bacteria. These results suggest that while the impacts of earthworms vary between different soils, the consistent response of some bacteria may aid in predicting the impacts of earthworms on soil ecosystems.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © FEMS 2018. This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for details. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Sciences (York) > Environment and Geography (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 07 Nov 2018 17:10 |
Last Modified: | 16 Oct 2024 14:57 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1093/femsec/fiy051 |
Status: | Published |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1093/femsec/fiy051 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:138372 |
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