Impact of naphthalene on soil fauna diversity: Consequences for ecosystem functioning and carbon cycling in grasslands

作者：Chengyang Zhou, Gai Hang, Xiaonan Wang, Shining Zuo, Li Liu, Ding Huang · 发表于：Ecological Indicators · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1016/j.ecolind.2024.112640 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Rangeland and Wildlife Management、Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics、Isotope Analysis in Ecology

• Soil fauna diversity increased litter decomposition and soil organic carbon accumulation. • Naphthalene altered soil fauna composition, reducing their abundance and slowing litter decomposition. • Naphthalene weakened the link between fauna diversity, litter decomposition, and carbon accumulation. Soil fauna, key indicators of grassland ecosystem health, face significant threats from the vast amounts of chemical pollutants released by human activities. These organisms are crucial for fundamental processes such as litter decomposition and carbon cycling. However, the response of soil animal communities and their functional dynamics to environmental chemical stress remains poorly understood. To investigate this, we conducted a naphthalene addition and litterbag experiment in the Bashang Grassland, located on the southern Inner Mongolia Plateau, to analyze its effects on soil fauna and litter decomposition. The investigated soil fauna groups included Arachnida (Arachnids), Insecta (Insects), Collembola (Springtails), Enoplea (enopleans), and Chromadorea (chromadoreans). The litter composition included Leymus chinensis , Stipa krylovii , Artemisia , Saussurea amara , and Artemisia giraldii. The findings indicated that a high diversity of soil fauna enhanced the decomposition of litter and the release of organic carbon from the litter. While the addition of naphthalene decreased both the abundance of soil fauna and the rate of litter decomposition, it specifically increased the ...