Author: Holmstrup, M.; Maraldo, K.; Krogh, P.H.
Description: Soil microarthropods experience a large range of natural stressors in their natural environment, e.g. variations in temperature and soil moisture, but also anthropogenic stressors such as soil pollutants. In the present study the combined effect of drought stress and copper pollution on microarthropods was investigated in a field study. We hypothesized that microarthropods in copper polluted soil would be more susceptible to drought than animals in control soil. Surprisingly, the abundance of microarthropods in autumn was positively affected by summer drought and copper pollution did not influence the effect of drought in a negative way. The stimulation was mainly seen as an increase of Acari, but also groups of Collembola were positively affected. We suggest that the positive effect of the enforced summer drought could be due to a rapid recovery, which further is accelerated by an increase of food resources (microbes) which have not been utilized during the drought.
Subject headings: Acari–physiology; Animals; Arthropods–physiology; Biodiversity; Copper–toxicity; Disasters; Insects–physiology; Seasons; Soil–analysis; Soil Pollutants–toxicity; Temperature; Water
Publication year: 2007
Journal or book title: Environmental Pollution
Volume: 146
Issue: 2
Pages: 525-533
Find the full text : https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S026974910600474X
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Type: Journal Article
Serial number: 39