Effects of fungicides and biofungicides on population density and community structure of soil oribatid mites

Tillage and slurry over-fertilization affect oribatid mite communities in a semiarid Mediterranean environment

“…The use of oribatid species for bioindication in agricultural land is a complex issue; firstly, because the number of species is much lower than that of forests (Ruf et al, 2003); secondly, because they must be abundant in the area of study (Çilgi, 1994); thirdly, because it is necessary to incorporate information on life history traits, and habitat and niche profiles (Behan-Pelletier, 1999). Some surveys (Arroyo and Iturrondobeitia, 2006;Luptácik et al, 2012) describe the potential differences in oribatid mites' numbers and diversity according to the intensity of the land use (forest vs agricultural land) in continental climates, while Al-Assiuty et al (2014) studied the effect of pesticides on the previous mentioned parameters in a hot desert climate.…”

Independent role of belowground organisms and plant cultivar diversity in legume-grass communities

“…However, pesticides can have strong non-target effects. Mounting evidence suggests that the application of fungicides or herbicides can impact non-target soil organisms (Yang et al, 2011) and alter the community structure of soil organisms (Al-Assiuty et al, 2014). Thus, it seems reasonable to improve yields by adding mycorrhiza to a natural background community, supporting a possible application of plant mutualists in organic agriculture.…”

“…For instance, to demonstrate the impact of fungi in communities, fungicides are often applied as a control treatment to suppress mutualistic or pathogenic soil fungi. However, fungicides have also been shown to affect earthworms (Xu et al, 2011), soil protozoan (Ekelund, 1999), bacterial diversity (Johnsen et al, 2001) and community structure of soil oribatid mites (Al-Assiuty et al, 2014). The resulting feedback from the modified belowground community can then affect plant growth and productivity in natural and agricultural systems.…”

Biohazards of the biofungicide, Trichoderma harzianum on the crayfish, Procambarus clarkii: Histological and biochemical implications

“…These results in agreement with the results of Abdul-Wahid et al [21] who reported that reduction of cockroaches' (Periplaneta americana) population due to fungal treatment by T. harzianum was 100% at 24 h. Sakran [22] proved that Butachlor and fluazifop-p-butyl (herbicides) caused reduction in the survival rate of Biomphalaria alexandrina. Al-Assiuty et al [23], show that the abundance and species diversity of oribatid mites varies greatly by the effect of fungicides (T. harzianum and Pythium oligandrum) by their taxon and fungicide. These effects are not due to direct toxicity of fungicides to the mites, but they are mediated by changes in the fungal community of the soil (as an essential food item for soil microarthropods).…”