Community Ecology of Soil Fauna Under Periodically Flooded Forest and Anthropic Fields

Abstract

The study evaluated the ecology of soil invertebrate faunal communities in periodically flooded forest (CF) fragments and anthropic fields (AF) in the Atlantic Forest. The sampling occurred in the rainy and dry seasons using pitfall traps. We estimated the total activity, richness, diversity, and evenness as well as the activity of the taxonomic and functional groups. Total activity and richness varied as a function of seasonality. Entomobryomorpha, Poduromorpha, and Symphypleona were the most representative taxonomic groups. Enchytraeidae and Blattaria were exclusive to CF. Auchenorrhyncha, Chilopoda, Heteroptera, and Thysanoptera were exclusive to AF. The functional group of microphagous/saprophagous (M/S) showed the highest activity, independent of the environment and season. Greater dissimilarity was observed among the invertebrate fauna in AF when compared to CF. Periodically flooded areas favored groups from the saprophagous trophic guild, while AF areas favored predator and herbivore groups. Soil fauna present in forest environments presented less seasonal variability.