Biodiv Sci ›› 2014, Vol. 22 ›› Issue (3): 392-400.  DOI: 10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13217

Special Issue: 土壤生物与土壤健康

• Research Bulletin • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of different amounts of straw returning treatments on soil nematode community in purple soil

Cui Hua1, Pengfei Wu1,*(), Xianjin He1, Bo Zhu2   

  1. 1. College of Life Science and Technology, Southwest University for Nationalities, Chengdu 610041
    2. Key Laboratory of Environmental Evolution and Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041
  • Received:2013-10-09 Accepted:2014-03-18 Online:2014-05-20 Published:2014-06-04
  • Contact: Wu Pengfei

Abstract:

We evaluated the effects of 4 years of straw returning (2007-2011) on the nematode communities of the purple soil area in the hilly areas of central Sichuan basin, China, using the four treatments of 100, 50, 30, and 0% of straw returned to cropland. The Baermann method was used to extract nematodes from soil samples (0-15 cm). A total of 2,380 individuals, belonging to 2 classes, 8 orders, 24 families, and 39 genera, were extracted. The dominant genera included Tylencholaimus and Prionchulus, comprising 31% of total soil nematode individuals. Our results showed that soil nematode communities differed among the four treatments. Densities of the total nematode community, and fungivores and predators-omnivores specifically exhibited greater fluctuations with reducing straw return levels, while densities of bacterivores increased with reducing straw levels. Plant-parasite density, diversity index(H'), plant-parasite index (PPI) and Wasilewska index (WI) first increased and then decreased with reduction of straw return, while genera number, free-living nematode maturity index (MI) and channel ratio (CR) presented the opposite trend. Nematode diversity index (H') was highest at 30-50% straw return levels. But there were no significant differences among treatments for all of the indexes. The content of soil available potassium, which significantly increased at the lower levels of straw return, was significantly correlated with diversity indices of nematode communities. Our results suggested that straw return management changes the nematode community through its action on the content of soil available potassium, and that level of 30-50% of straw returning were optimal in the hilly areas of central Sichuan basin in terms of maximizing nematode diversity.

Key words: amounts of straw returning, soil nematode, diversity, community structure, trophic groups