Invertebrate control of soil organic matter stability |
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| Authors: | V Wolters |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Animal Ecology, Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen, Stephanstrasse 24, D-35390 Giessen, Germany e-mail: Volkmar.Wolters@allzool.bio.uni-giessen.de Fax: +49-641-9935629, DE |
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| Abstract: | The control of soil organic matter (SOM) stability by soil invertebrates is evaluated in terms of their impact on the inherent
recalcitrance, accessibility to microorganisms, and interaction with stabilizing substances of organic compounds. Present
knowledge on internal (ingestion and associated transformations) and external (defecation, constructions) control mechanisms
of soil invertebrates is also reviewed. Soil animals contribute to the stabilization and destabilization of SOM by simultaneously
affecting chemical, physical, and microbial processes over several orders of magnitude. A very important aspect of this is
that invertebrates at higher trophic levels create feedback mechanisms that modify the spatio-temporal framework in which
the micro-food web affects SOM stability. Quantification of non-trophic and indirect effects is thus essential in order to
understand the long-term effects of soil biota on SOM turnover. It is hypothesized that the activities of invertebrates which
lead to an increase in SOM stability partly evolved as an adaptation to the need for increasing the suitability of their soil
habitat. Several gaps in knowledge are identified: food selection and associated changes in C pools, differential effects
on SOM turnover, specific associations with microorganisms, effects on dissolution and desorption reactions, humus-forming
and humus-degrading processes in gut and faeces, and the modification of invertebrate effects by environmental variables.
Future studies must not be confined merely to a mechanistic analysis of invertebrate control of SOM stability, but also pay
considerable attention to the functional and evolutionary aspects of animal diversity in soil. This alone will allow an integration
of biological expertise in order to develop new strategies of soil management which can be applied under a variety of environmental
conditions.
Received: 6 April 1999 |
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| Keywords: | Soil organic matter Soil macrofauna Faeces Soil microflora Carbon mineralization |
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