Development of physico-chemical and biological soil properties on the European ground squirrel mounds

Lindtner, Peter; Gömöryová, Erika; Gömöry, Dušan; Stašiov, Slavomír; Kubovčík, Vladimír

doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2018.12.043

Cited by 20 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…The last may have an indirect impact creating a cleaner micro-environment. We also know that the soil in the mounds, constructed by the ground squirrels themselves during excavation activities, has a higher pH and reduced microbiological acivity, diversity and heterogenity (Lindtner et al 2019b). On the other hand, the formic acid, an organic substance of ants (subfamily Formicinae, including Lasius genus) mainly used for defence, trail marking and predation (Hölldobler and Wilson 1990), has repellent properties.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of ant nests in European ground squirrel’s (Spermophilus citellus) post-reintroduction adaptation in two Bulgarian mountains

Kachamakova

Antonova

Koshev

2019

BDJ

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The European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) is a vulnerable species, whose populations are declining throughout its entire range in Central and South-Eastern Europe. To a great extent, its conservation depends on habitat restoration, maintenance and protection. In order to improve the conservation status of the species, reintroductions are increasingly applied. Therefore, researchers focus their attention on factors that facilitate these activities and contribute to their success. In addition to the well-known factors like grass height and exposition, others, related to the underground characteristics, are more difficult to evaluate. The presence of other digging species could help this evaluation. Here, we present two reintroduced ground squirrel colonies, where the vast majority of the burrows are located in the base of anthills, mainly of yellow meadow ant (Lasius flavus). This interspecies relationship offers numerous advantages for the ground squirrel and is mostly neutral for the ants. The benefits for the ground squirrel, including reduced energy demand for digging, as well as additional surveillance and hiding places available, could greatly enhance the post-reintroduction adaptation process.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of ant nests in European ground squirrel’s (Spermophilus citellus) post-reintroduction adaptation in two Bulgarian mountains

Kachamakova

Antonova

Koshev

2019

BDJ

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“…Individuals of the European ground squirrel inhabit permanent burrow systems. The volume of an average mound created by the European ground squirrel is about 200 kg of soil, and total amount of soil translocated by ground squirrels can vary from 3 to 20 tons per hectare (Lindtner et al ., ). Thus, European ground squirrels can have a marked influence on the physiognomy and ecological conditions of their habitats.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…The mean annual precipitation ranges between 550 and 600 mm (Miklós, ). The soil at the first study site consists of rendzina (pH = 7.2) on calcareous conglomerates, and at the second study site consists of cambisols (pH = 5.0) on sandstones (Lindtner et al ., ). Both study sites represent mesic pastures consisting of the Cynosurion cristati , Tüxen 1947 alliance.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Spider (Araneae) and harvestman (Opiliones) communities are structured by the ecosystem engineering of burrowing mammals

Lindtner

Gajdoš

Stašiov

et al. 2019

Insect Conserv Diversity

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1. Burrowing mammals through their digging activities are important ecosystem engineers and bioturbators in grassland ecosystems. Through habitat formation, they can have significant effects on other species in an ecosystem, structuring their abundance and diversity.2. We analysed the effect of the European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) on spider (Araneae) and harvestman (Opiliones) communities, because these arachnids are the most abundant and dominant predators with a great variety of foraging strategies, and their community composition is strongly influenced by the physical structure of the environment.3. We established replicate mound plots positioned directly in the centre of ground squirrel mounds with paired off-mound control plots undisturbed by ground squirrels. We sampled spiders and harvestmen using pitfall traps on 30 ground squirrel mounds and 30 paired off-mound control plots at two study sites differing in grazing intensity and plant species richness.4. We found that the response of spiders was site-specific, while harvestmen responded consistently to disturbances by burrowing mammals. Mounds exhibited increased abundance and species richness of harvestmen at both study sites, while species richness of spiders was increased only in intensively managed grassland. We also detected compositional changes of the arachnid community on the mounds in comparison to the grassland matrix. 5. Our findings indicate that burrowing mammals through physical state changes in abiotic and biotic material modulate the resources for other species and maintain a high diversity of biotic communities in intensively grazed grasslands.

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“…Many studies have been focused on examining soil chemical and physical parameters such as soil reaction (pH), soil organic carbon (SOC), cation exchange capacity (CEC), electric conductivity (EC), aggregate stability, bulk density, and soil porosity [8,9]. On the other hand, a proposed minimum dataset for soil quality assessment as quantitative indicators is linked to physical, chemical, and chemical, and biological parameters or a mix of physical and biological characteristics, such as soil texture, infiltration, and soil bulk density, water holding capacity, SOC, soil microbial biomass, and microbial activity, pH value, total organic carbon, and nitrogen (N), N mineralized under aerobic condition, and extractable N, phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) [10,11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Biological Fertility and Bacterial Community Response to Land Use Intensity: A Case Study in the Mediterranean Area

et al. 2019

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The current study was performed to investigate the effects of three different long-term land use intensities on adjacent soil plots, namely a winter wheat field, a grass-covered vineyard, and a cherry farm, on soil biochemical, microbial, and molecular parameters. The results showed the maximum content of soil organic matter (SOM) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) observed in the grass-covered vineyard. Basal respiration (BSR) and the cumulated respiration (CSR) after 25 days of incubation were significantly higher in the grass-covered vineyard and cherry farm, respectively (BSR 11.84 mg CO2–C kg−1 soil d−1, CSR 226.90 mg CO2–C kg−1 soil). Grass-covered vineyard showed the highest soil biological fertility index (BFI) score (20) and ranked in the class IV (good) of soil biological fertility. Cereal field and cherry farm had lower BFI scores and the corresponding BFI class was III (medium). In addition, the maximum ribosomal RNA copy number and the highest abundance of oligotrophic bacterial groups (25.52% Actinobacteria, 3.45% Firmicutes, and 1.38% Acidobacteria) were observed in the grass-covered vineyard. In conclusion, the grass-covered vineyard is a more conservative system and could have a large potential to improve total carbon storage in soil, mainly because of the cover crop residue management and the low soil perturbation through the no-tillage system.

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Development of physico-chemical and biological soil properties on the European ground squirrel mounds

Cited by 20 publications

References 44 publications

The role of ant nests in European ground squirrel’s (Spermophilus citellus) post-reintroduction adaptation in two Bulgarian mountains

The role of ant nests in European ground squirrel’s (Spermophilus citellus) post-reintroduction adaptation in two Bulgarian mountains

Spider (Araneae) and harvestman (Opiliones) communities are structured by the ecosystem engineering of burrowing mammals

Soil Biological Fertility and Bacterial Community Response to Land Use Intensity: A Case Study in the Mediterranean Area

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