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The impact of earthworms on the abundance of Collembola: improvement of food resources or of habitat?

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Abstract

I assessed the direct influence of earthworm excretions, and the impact of earthworms through their action on the soil structure (increased macroporosity), on the population dynamics of the collembolan species Heteromurus nitidus. The intestinal content of Collembola arising from cultures on different soil types was observed, and two experimental cultures of H. nitidus were run: (1) a culture performed on an inert substrate supplied either with earthworm casts or with soil as food resource, (2) an experiment using microcosms with cores of two humus forms (moder and calcic mull), in the presence or absence of earthworms. The observation of gut contents revealed that H. nitidus feeds on excrements, the composition of which (ratio organic matter/mineral matter) varies according to the humus form where it lived. Slightly aged (10–15 days) organo-mineral casts of earthworms appeared to be a better food than calcic mull aggregates or organic material from moder. Densities of H. nitidus cultured in cores of calcic mull were higher than in moder, except when cores of moder were inhabited by an anecic earthworm for 2 months. The humus form strongly influenced populations of H. nitidus, firstly because densities of predators were higher in moder than in calcic mull, and probably also because of soil macroporosity. It was concluded that earthworms would affect predation on H. nitidus by creating a network of interconnected macropores in which Collembola can move and find shelter.

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Acknowledgements

I am grateful to Jean-François Ponge for fruitful discussions and improvement of the paper. I also greatly acknowledge Céryl Techer for field assistance. I thank also anonymous reviewers for the improvement of the manuscript.

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  1. Département Ecologie et Gestion de la Biodiversité, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, 4, avenue du Petit-Château, 91800, Brunoy, France

    Sandrine Salmon

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Correspondence to Sandrine Salmon.

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Salmon, S. The impact of earthworms on the abundance of Collembola: improvement of food resources or of habitat?. Biol Fertil Soils 40, 323–333 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-004-0782-y

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