Effects of outbreak of the train millipede Parafontaria laminata armigera Verhoeff (Diplopoda: Xystodesmidae) on litter decomposition in a natural beech forest in Central Japan. 1. Density and biomass of soil invertebrates

• Published in: Ecological research 1998-03, Vol.13 (1), p.41-53
• Main Author: Niijima, Keiko
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: beech forest; Biomass; Decomposition; density; Litter; Macroinvertebrates; Outbreaks; Parafontaria laminata armigera; Soil density; Soil formation; Soil invertebrates; Soil properties; VERHOEFF
• ISSN: 0912-3814; 1440-1703
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1440-1703.1998.00242.x

Soil invertebrates were studied to determine the animals important in litter decomposition and soil formation in a natural forest of Fagus crenata Blume mixed with Quercus mongolica var. grosseserrata REHD. et WILS., where outbreak of the adult train millipede, Parafontaria laminata armigera VERHOEFF was recorded in 1980. The density and biomass of soil invertebrates, and their distribution in soil, were surveyed largely by hand sorting and also using Tullgren and Baermann apparatuses. The densities of soil macroinvertebrates were 102–103 individuals/m2. Diplopoda was the most abundant among them, 87.3% of which was the train millipede. The total biomass in wet weight of soil macro‐invertebrates was 34.9–70.5 g/m2 in 1980–1981, when the millipede was pre‐adult or adult, and it decreased to 3.5–6.7 g/m2 in 1982–1984, when it was young. The density of soil invertebrates extracted by apparatuses was 104–106 individuals/m2. The total biomass of these was estimated to be 5.8–10.8 g/m2. The majority of soil invertebrates lived in the A0 horizon, whereas the train millipede lived in soil of the A1 + A2 horizon. These results suggest that the train millipede is one of the most important soil invertebrates affecting soil properties. For evaluating the importance of the species, more than 8 years' survey of hand‐sorting together with the Tullgren apparatus was necessary, as the train millipede grew synchronously and had an 8‐year life span and young stages of 1.5–3.5 mm long.