Functional collembolan assemblages induce different plant responses in Lolium perenne

Bruna R Winck (1) , Matthieu Chauvat (2) , Sékou Coulibaly (2) , Mathieu Santonja (3) , Enilson Luiz Saccol de Sá (1) , Estelle Forey (2)

1 UFRGS - Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul [Porto Alegre]
2 ECODIV - Étude et compréhension de la biodiversité
3 IMBE - Institut méditerranéen de biodiversité et d'écologie marine et continentale

Background and aims Interactions between functional groups of soil fauna and plants are poorly explored although they drive functional processes such as nutrient availability and therefore plant performance. Here, we investigated the separated and combined effects of two collembolan functional groups on soil properties and growth of Lolium perenne, a typical grass species from temperate grasslands. Methods Under microcosm conditions, we established four treatments based on the presence and combination of two collembolan functional groups: (1) control without Collembola; (2) epedaphic species; (3) euedaphic species; (4) epedaphic + euedaphic species. After five months of experiment, we measured the effect of those treatments on both nutritional and morphological variables of L. perenne and on soil properties. Results Collembolan presence stimulated plant performance. Individuals of L. perenne growing with euedaphic species presented higher numbers of leaves and nutrient contents compared with individuals growing with epedaphic species. Further, the combination of both collembolan functional groups enhanced plant performance and soil nutrient availability, demonstrating that a functionally diversified soil fauna assemblage cause overyielding of ecological processes. Conclusion Our results provide evidences of complementarity interactions between different functional groups of soil fauna causing overyielding of primary production.

Mots clés: Functional complementarity; facilitation; plant performance; springtails; soil fauna; biotic interaction

Domaines: Biodiversité et Ecologie

Bruna R Winck, Matthieu Chauvat, Sékou Coulibaly, Mathieu Santonja, Enilson Luiz Saccol de Sá, et al.. Functional collembolan assemblages induce different plant responses in Lolium perenne. Plant and Soil, 2020, 452 (1-2), pp.347-358. ⟨10.1007/s11104-020-04579-0⟩. ⟨hal-02746504⟩