Soil fauna across Central European sandstone ravines with temperature inversion: From cool and shady to dry and hot places |
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| Institution: | 1. Denver Museum of Nature and Science, 2001 Colorado Boulevard, Denver, CO 80205, USA;2. U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Box 25046, MS-980, Denver, CO 80225, USA;3. School of Earth Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA;4. National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Box 37012, MRC 106, Washington, DC 20013, USA;5. U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Box 25046, MS-974, Denver, CO 80225, USA;6. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA;7. School of Geography, Archaeology and Palaeoecology, Queen''s University Belfast, BT7 1NN Belfast, UK;8. Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA;9. Rocky Mountain Tree-Ring Research, 2901 Moore Lane, Fort Collins, CO 80526, USA;10. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, 1100 North University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA;11. Geography Department, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK;12. University of Michigan Museum of Paleontology, 1109 Geddes Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA;13. Department of Geography, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA;14. Department of Botany, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, USA;15. Southwest Climate Science Center, Institute of the Environment, University of Arizona, 715N. Park Ave., Tucson, AZ 85719, USA;p. Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, Fuente Nueva s/n, 18002 Granada, Spain;q. Department of Geology, Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO 80903, USA;r. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, and Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA;s. Museum Management Program, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80525, USA;t. Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA;u. U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Box 25046, MS-963, Denver, CO 80225, USA;v. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA;w. Idaho National Laboratory, P.O. Box 1625, Idaho Falls, ID 83415, USA;x. Centre for Marine Futures, Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia, M470 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia;y. San Bernardino County Museum, 2024 Orange Tree Lane, Redlands, CA 92374, USA;z. Desert Research Institute, 2215 Raggio Parkway, Reno, NV 89512, USA;11. Aeon Laboratories, LLC, 5835 N Genematas Drive, Tucson, AZ 85704, USA |
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| Abstract: | Sandstone massifs with their deep ravines or gorges offer the instructive opportunity to study the response of organisms to steep environmental gradients. In 2008–2010, many groups of soil fauna were studied along transects across three ravines in the Bohemian Switzerland National Park (north-western Czech Republic), a part of the Elbe Sandstone Massif. Each transect included five sampling positions: two opposite edges, two opposite mid-slope positions, and the ravine bottom. The ravines had a specific microclimate characterized by temperature inversion. In general, the cooler and more humid ravine bottoms had also less acid soil with lower carbon content but enriched by litter of deciduous trees and herbs. The other transect positions were characterized by spruce (mid-slopes) and pine (edges) stands with mor humus, exposed to drought in the upper parts. The soil animal communities (identified to species level) differed substantially in dependence on their position along the transects. Ravine bottoms hosted a diverse soil fauna, including a rich macrofauna. The thick duff layer of acid soils on the slopes and edges hosted a poorer fauna but supported high densities of important decomposers such as enchytraeids, oribatid mites and microbivorous nematodes. In general, these were higher on the slopes, presumably due to the drought exposure of the edges. Vertical position in the ravine and soil pH were the most important factors explaining community composition. This confirmed that the area's high geomorphological diversity, leading to steep microclimatic gradients and heterogenous soil conditions, is a major cause of its high biodiversity. A shift in community structure in the lower parts of the ravines, observed after the first half of the study period, was possibly caused by summer flash floods. An increased frequency and severity of dry spells and flash floods due to heavy rains, predicted by relevant climate warming scenarios, will probably have an detrimental effect on the ravines'soil fauna. |
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| Keywords: | Soil fauna Ravines Gorges Environmental gradients Species richness Drought |
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