Diversity and abundance of soil-litter arthropods and their relationships with soil physicochemical properties under different land uses in Rwanda

peer reviewedSoil-litter arthropods are critical for ecosystem functioning and sensitive to land use change, and hence to the variations in soil physicochemical properties. The relationships between soil-litter arthropod communities and soil physicochemical properties, however, remain poorly studied in Rwanda. We explored the relationships between the families of soil-litter arthropods and soil properties in exotic and native tree species, and in varieties of coffee and banana plantations. Soil-litter arthropods were sampled by using Berlese funnels, hand sorting, and pitfall traps, and were identified to the family level. Soil cores were collected and analysed for soil pH, available phosphorus, total nitrogen, soil organic carbon, silt, clay and sand. A total of 3176 individuals of soil-litter arthropods were collected, identified and classified into 13 orders and 23 families. Higher abundance was found in soil and litter sampled in plots of native tree species and banana plantations compared to exotic tree species and coffee plantations. Higher diversity was found in plots of native and exotic tree species. The analysis of soil physicochemical properties indicated that native tree species offer suitable conditions of studied soil properties. The study of the relationships between the land use, soil properties and families of soil-litter arthropods indicated positive correlations and relationships mainly in native tree species. We conclude that forest with native tree species play an important role in the conservation of soil-litter arthropods and for maintenance of better soil conditions

The bii4africa dataset of faunal and floral population intactness estimates across Africa’s major land uses

Sub-Saharan Africa is under-represented in global biodiversity datasets, particularly regarding the impact of land use on species’ population abundances. Drawing on recent advances in expert elicitation to ensure data consistency, 200 experts were convened using a modified-Delphi process to estimate ‘intactness scores’: the remaining proportion of an ‘intact’ reference population of a species group in a particular land use, on a scale from 0 (no remaining individuals) to 1 (same abundance as the reference) and, in rare cases, to 2 (populations that thrive in human-modified landscapes). The resulting bii4africa dataset contains intactness scores representing terrestrial vertebrates (tetrapods: ±5,400 amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals) and vascular plants (±45,000 forbs, graminoids, trees, shrubs) in sub-Saharan Africa across the region’s major land uses (urban, cropland, rangeland, plantation, protected, etc.) and intensities (e.g., large-scale vs smallholder cropland). This dataset was co-produced as part of the Biodiversity Intactness Index for Africa Project. Additional uses include assessing ecosystem condition; rectifying geographic/ taxonomic biases in global biodiversity indicators and maps; and informing the Red List of Ecosystems

The bii4africa dataset of faunal and floral population intactness estimates across Africa’s major land uses

Sub-Saharan Africa is under-represented in global biodiversity datasets, particularly regarding the impact of land use on species’ population abundances. Drawing on recent advances in expert elicitation to ensure data consistency, 200 experts were convened using a modified-Delphi process to estimate ‘intactness scores’: the remaining proportion of an ‘intact’ reference population of a species group in a particular land use, on a scale from 0 (no remaining individuals) to 1 (same abundance as the reference) and, in rare cases, to 2 (populations that thrive in human-modified landscapes). The resulting bii4africa dataset contains intactness scores representing terrestrial vertebrates (tetrapods: ±5,400 amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals) and vascular plants (±45,000 forbs, graminoids, trees, shrubs) in sub-Saharan Africa across the region’s major land uses (urban, cropland, rangeland, plantation, protected, etc.) and intensities (e.g., large-scale vs smallholder cropland). This dataset was co-produced as part of the Biodiversity Intactness Index for Africa Project. Additional uses include assessing ecosystem condition; rectifying geographic/taxonomic biases in global biodiversity indicators and maps; and informing the Red List of Ecosystems

A comparative study between sampling methods for soil litter arthropods in conserved tree plots and banana crop plantations in Rwanda

The aim of this study was to compare trapping efficiency between Berlese-Tullgren funnels, pitfall traps and hand sorting sampling methods for soil litter arthropods. The study was carried out at the Arboretum of Ruhande and Rubona agricultural research station, in southern Rwanda. Biological indices indicated that pitfall traps collect a wide range of soil litter arthropod diversity, and chi-square test indicated the dependence between Berlese-Tullgren funnels and pitfall traps, and between pitfall traps and hand sorting. Z-test and univariate comparison indicated differences in means between tested sampling methods. The analysis of variance revealed that pitfall traps are less time consuming and the principal component analysis indicated that Formicidae is likely to be collected by pitfall traps and Berlese-Tullgren funnels, while Julidae, Porcellionidae and Geophilidae are likely to be collected by hand sorting. Research concluded that pitfall traps are more efficient than other studied sampling methods, but further studies should be conducted in other ecological zones, and different land uses in order to generate general information of these findings

Application of conservation biology research to management

We conducted a survey of all primary authors of Contributed Papers and Research Notes in Conservation Biology from 1987 to 1998 to assess the perceived effectiveness of published management recommendations. No systematic survey has previously assessed the degree to which authors believe that resource managers are using the growing body of research published in Conservation Biology. In March 1999, we sent surveys to 667 authors of 790 published papers, asking whether their papers included management recommendations, whether such recommendations have been used in practice, and why they believed they have or have not been used. We received completed surveys from 198 authors of 223 papers. The percentage of papers that included management recommendations increased from 1987 to 1991, then stabilized at about 75%. Author perception of the use of management recommendations generally increased over the 5 years from 1994 to 1998. Initiatives of federal, state, and local agencies were the most often-cited cause of successful implementation of management recommendations, accounting for over half of all such cases. Our survey suggests that authors in Conservation Biology have increased the use of explicit management recommendations in their papers and that authors believe their recommendations are being used to an increasing degree

Use of soil and litter arthropods as biological indicators of soil quality in forest plantations and agricultural lands: A Review

This article reviewed published papers on the use of soil and litter arthropods as biological indicators of soil quality since the 1970s. Our review shows that soil and litter arthropods are litter transformers and ecosystem engineers. They contribute to the availability of organic matter. Their diversity, abundance, biomass, and density are suitable measures for the assessment of natural and/or anthropogenic effects on soil. However, their use is challenged by difficulties in sampling methods and the identification of soil and litter arthropod diversity up to species level, and few research projects combine both abiotic and biotic factors. We recommend further research to investigate the most suitable methods for sampling soil and litter arthropods, and create a classification of dominant groups up to species level which, along with the use of integrative methodologies, will be valuable steps towards a generalized and accepted method for the assessment of soil qualityUse of soil litter arthropods as biological indicators of soil qualit

scripts -- Fruiting phenology patterns, Nyungwe National Park, Rwanda

R scripts for analysis of fruiting phenology patterns in Nyungwe National Park, Rwanda, 1996-2019.</p