Plant diversity and identity effects on predatory nematodes and their prey

Ecology and Evolution
Olga KostenkoT Martijn Bezemer

Abstract

There is considerable evidence that both plant diversity and plant identity can influence the level of predation and predator abundance aboveground. However, how the level of predation in the soil and the abundance of predatory soil fauna are related to plant diversity and identity remains largely unknown. In a biodiversity field experiment, we examined the effects of plant diversity and identity on the infectivity of entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs, Heterorhabditis and Steinernema spp.), which prey on soil arthropods, and abundance of carnivorous non-EPNs, which are predators of other nematode groups. To obtain a comprehensive view of the potential prey/food availability, we also quantified the abundance of soil insects and nonpredatory nematodes and the root biomass in the experimental plots. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to investigate possible pathways by which plant diversity and identity may affect EPN infectivity and the abundance of carnivorous non-EPNs. Heterorhabditis spp. infectivity and the abundance of carnivorous non-EPNs were not directly related to plant diversity or the proportion of legumes, grasses and forbs in the plant community. However, Steinernema spp. infectivity was higher in monocultures...Continue Reading

References

Aug 7, 1999·Science·C Thies, T Tscharntke
Mar 30, 2007·Nature·T Martijn Bezemer, Wim H van der Putten
Aug 26, 2009·Ecology Letters·Nick M HaddadDavid Tilman
Oct 2, 2012·Ecology Letters·Elizabeth T BorerVojtech Novotny

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