MANAGEMENT OF AGROECOSYSTEMS AND FUNCTIONAL DIVERSITY OF SOIL-ASSOCIATED ARTHROPODS IN THE EASTERN AMAZON

Author(s):  
Neilson Rocha Silva ◽  
Eguinaldo dos Santos Guimarães ◽  
Luziel Oliveira Ferreira ◽  
Diego Macedo Rodrigues

In the Eastern Amazon, the change in vegetation cover by converting forest areas to pastures affects the diversity of arthropods, and non-conservationist management in these areas can reduce functional diversity, compromising the sustainability of the agroecosystem. Accordingly, the objective of this work was to analyze the composition of the functional groups of the arthropod community associated with the soil under different management regimes in agroecosystems in the Eastern Amazon. For this, the study was carried out in three agroecosystems, namely bean cultivation, cassava cultivation and pasture, and in an area of secondary forest used as a reference. Arthropods were captured by means of fall traps installed in the center of agroecosystems. The captured arthropods were identified at the order and family level and later grouped according to their function. A total of 19,850 individuals were collected and classified into six different functional groups: herbivores, social insects, omnivores, predators, saprophages and xylophages. The arthropods in bean and cassava cultivation agroecosystems were more abundant and diversified in most functional groups. The results revealed that agroecosystems with crop rotation and intercropping, with the incorporation of plant residues and associated with spontaneous plants favored the diversity of functional groups.

2020 ◽  
Vol 80 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Marina Mazón ◽  
Ximena López ◽  
Oscar Romero

Ecosystems under ecological restoration should be monitored in order to investigate if the ecosystem is being functionally recovered, especially in highly vulnerable biodiversity hotspots like Andean forests. Here we sampled Hymenoptera families in four Andean forest reserves above 1800 masl from Southern Ecuador, in three conservation levels in each forest: low (degraded), medium (10–15 years of recovery) and high (well-conserved forest). All Hymenoptera families were classified into four functional groups: predators, herbivores, pollinators and parasitoids. A total of 32 hymenopteran families were collected, with parasitoids clearly dominating in the samples. Family assemblages were not statistically different, neither in abundance nor family richness. Assemblages were more similar between them in the high and medium areas than in low conservation areas, where assemblages were very variable and showed a higher functional diversity in two of the reserves. The low presence of pollinators may be due to the high humidity during the sampling and the sampling method. Although some results are promising for the restoring trajectory, especially for parasitoids, we should keep in mind that this is at family level, so it would be interesting to know if these patterns persist at lower taxonomic levels.


Author(s):  
Pierre Taberlet ◽  
Aurélie Bonin ◽  
Lucie Zinger ◽  
Eric Coissac

Chapter 10 “Environmental DNA for functional diversity” discusses the potential of environmental DNA to assess functional diversity. It first focuses on DNA metabarcoding and discusses the extent to which this approach can be used and/or optimized to retrieve meaningful information on the functions of the target community. This knowledge usually involves coarsely defined functional groups (e.g., woody, leguminous, graminoid plants; shredders or decomposer soil organisms; pathogenicity or decomposition role of certain microorganisms). Chapter 10 then introduces metagenomics and metatranscriptomics approaches, their advantages, but also the challenges and solutions to appropriately sampling, sequencing these complex DNA/RNA populations. Chapter 10 finally presents several strategies and software to analyze metagenomes/metatranscriptomes, and discusses their pros and cons.


2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilia A.L. Dahlsjö ◽  
Catherine L. Parr ◽  
Yadvinder Malhi ◽  
Homathevi Rahman ◽  
Patrick Meir ◽  
...  

Abstract:Termite species and functional groups differ among regions globally (the functional-diversity anomaly). Here we investigate whether similar differences in biomass and abundance of termites occur among continents. Biomass and abundance data were collected with standardized sampling in Cameroon, Malaysia and Peru. Data from Peru were original to this study, while data from Cameroon and Malaysia were compiled from other sources. Species density data were sampled using a standardized belt transect (100 × 2 m) while the biomass and abundance measurements were sampled using a standardized protocol based on 2 × 2-m quadrats. Biomass and abundance data confirmed patterns found for species density and thus the existence of the functional diversity anomaly: highest estimates for biomass and abundance were found in Cameroon (14.5 ± 7.90 g m−2 and 1234 ± 437 ind m−2) followed by Malaysia (0.719 ± 0.193 g m−2 and 327 ± 72 ind m−2) and then Peru (0.345 ± 0.103 g m−2 and 130 ± 39 ind m−2). The biomass and abundance for each functional group were significantly different across sites for most termite functional groups. Biogeographical distribution of lineages was the primary cause for the functional diversity anomaly with true soil-feeding termites dominating in Cameroon and the absence of fungus-growing termites from Peru. These findings are important as the biomass and abundance of functional groups may be linked to ecosystem processes. Although this study allowed for comparisons between data from different regions further comparable data are needed to enhance the understanding of the role of termites in ecosystem processes on a global scale.


2014 ◽  
Vol 140 ◽  
pp. 14-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Levavasseur ◽  
A. Biarnès ◽  
J.S. Bailly ◽  
P. Lagacherie

Sociobiology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 941 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luana Priscila de Carvalho Pereira ◽  
Fábio Souto Almeida ◽  
André Barbosa Vargas ◽  
Marcel Santos de Araújo ◽  
Antônio José Mayhé-Nunes ◽  
...  

The present study aimed at assessing the effects of climate seasonality on poneromorph ants in the Brazilian Amazon, by studying variations in composition, richness, and taxonomic and functional diversity. The study was carried out in the Tapirapé-Aquiri National Forest, southeastern Pará State. We collected poneromorph ants in three areas of native forest with pitfall traps and sardine baits on the ground and vegetation, in two dry and rainy seasons. We collected 46 species of poneromorph ants, which belong to two subfamilies and eleven genera. The species composition, richness and taxonomic diversity did not vary significantly between seasons. There was no significant difference in the frequency of species of functional groups between dry and rainy seasons. There was no significant difference in the average richness and average diversity of functional groups between the dry and rainy seasons. In our study we found no seasonal differences in composition, taxonomic and functional richness and diversity of poneromorph ants in the Amazon, which is useful for future studies that aim at using those ants as bioindicators. In addition, the identification of the species made in the present study has special relevance as it contributes to advance the knowledge of poneromorph ant diversity in the Amazon.


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-51
Author(s):  
Patrícia Mariničová ◽  
Pavol Eliáš

Abstract Nature, ecosystems and biodiversity provide human society with many benefits known as ecosystem services. Functional diversity is an important aspect of biodiversity. In this paper, we applied inductive approach to the identification, mapping and evaluation of ecosystem services of the Aegopodio-Alnetum glutinosae community in Tribeč Mts. The results from 2015 show that the alder floodplain forest represents one of the most productive forest ecosystems with seasonal maximum production of 59.03 g m−2, species diversity of N0 = 40 and functional diversity of FD = 10. The forage potential of this community is medium, the melliferous potential is high and the therapeutic potential was estimated as extremely rich in medicinal plants. From the functional groups for providing ecosystem services, woody plants and hemicryptophytes play the most significant role.


2019 ◽  
pp. 93-101
Author(s):  
A. L. Kyrylesko

The results of the energy assessment of the crop rotation chain in the Forest-Steppe of the Western Ukraine, humus balance in the soil, nitrogen circulation and plant residues are presented. It has been established that all the proposed fertilization systems are effective in terms of energy accumulation. It has been proved that application of mineral fertilizers in combination with organic fertilizers increases Kee values by 1.2 times. The results of energy estimation of a crop rotation link in the northern part of Forest Steppe of Ukraine are presented. It is established that effective in terms of the energy accumulation are all the proposed fertilizer systems. It is proved that the application of mineral fertilizers in the combination with organic ones increases Kee indices 1.2 times.


Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jastrzębska ◽  
Kostrzewska ◽  
Marks ◽  
Jastrzębski ◽  
Treder ◽  
...  

In recent years, sustainable agriculture has revitalized interest in crop rotations and their effects on crop performance and agroecosystem biodiversity, including weeds. This article used winter rye as an example and focused on the crop rotation (CR) impact on species, taxonomic and functional diversity of weed communities and analysed the contribution of crop rotation to protecting yield and regulating weed abundance. Long-term continuous rye cropping (CC) provided a background for comparison. Two variants of plant protection were also adopted: herbicide application (H+) and no plant protection (H−). The data from the 10th, 30th and 50th years of the experiment were included in the analysis. Diversified crop rotation with no chemical protection resulted in a satisfactory rye yield and reduced weed abundance—especially problem species—without a decrease in weed species diversity or functional diversity. When rye was grown under crop rotation, the herbicide application had no effect on yield protection, but it was harmful to weed biodiversity. The rye yield correlated negatively with weed biomass, but did not show a link with weed biodiversity. Continuation of long-term experiments as a research basis for contemporary and future scientific challenges is necessary.


Author(s):  
Puay Yok Tan ◽  
Yuanqiu Feng ◽  
Yun Hye Hwang

Purpose Secondary forest loss in Singapore has recently emerged as a contentious issue that tests the relationships between state, public and civil society, but debates on this issue have occurred without the benefit of supporting information on the spatial extent, and understanding of multiple socio-ecological impacts arising from their gradual disappearance. The purpose of this paper is to fill these knowledge gaps to contribute to development of approaches to manage land developments on secondary forests. Design/methodology/approach This study evaluated the past and potential future losses of spontaneous re-growth forest through spatial analyses of vegetation cover maps combined with national land use plans using remote sensing and GIS. The socio-ecological impacts of such losses were interpreted from published writings, which comprise scientific publications and public opinion in news media. Findings Secondary forest losses accounted for more than half of total vegetation cover reduction between 2007 and 2012, and future potential losses amount to about 4,700 ha of land if these are fully developed over the next 10-15 years. The socio-ecological consequences of such losses are identified. Strong public opinion are reflected in the large number of news article on the topic over the last four years, pointing to the emergence of a contentious issue that requires careful management. Originality/value This paper conducted the first assessment of the spatial extent of secondary forests losses, and an extensive review of public opinion of the matter, and the results validated the significance of this topic.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-113
Author(s):  
Rodolfo WingChing-Jones ◽  
Lidieth Uribe Lorío

Sustainable livestock production generates benefits for the environment, such as water capture, increased biodiversity and carbon dioxide capture. To measure these factors in a tropical setting, in 2007 we took three samples of a milk production system in Turrialba, Cartago, Costa Rica, in areas with permanent African Star grass cover (under grazing) and a secondary forest with 15 years of regeneration. We estimated carbon content in the microbial biomass, microbial activity (breathing technique), carbon usage profile (BIOLOG ECOPLATES®) and functional diversity of microorganisms (Shannon index). Biomass carbon in the pasture was 3,3 times higher than in the forest, but microbial activity was similar. Carbon use rate ranged from 22,22 to 85,19% in the pasture (higher in the forest: 29,63 to 92,59%). In both areas growth correlated with incubation time, but the forest had more biodiversity. Pasture areas are favored by carbon deposition to the rhizosphere, while the variety of vegetation in the forest allows greater functional diversity in the use of carbon substrates. 


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