Effects of organic pesticides on enchytraeids (Oligochaeta) in agroecosystems: laboratory and higher-tier tests

Enchytraeidae (Oligochaeta, Annelida) are often considered to be typical forestliving organisms, but they are regularly found in agroecosystems of the temperate regions of the world. Although less known than their larger relatives, the earthworms, these saprophagous organisms play similar roles in agricultural soils (but at a smaller scale), e.g., influencing soil structure and organic matter dynamics via microbial communities, and having a central place in soil food webs. Their diversity is rarely studied or often underestimated due to difficulties in distinguishing the species. New genetic techniques reveal that even in anthropogenically highly influenced soils, more than 10 species per site can be found. Because of their close contact with the soil pore water, a high ingestion rate and a thin cuticle, they often react very sensitively to a broad range of pesticides. Firstly we provide a short overview of the diversity and abundance of enchytraeid communities in agroecosystems. Afterwards, we explore the available data on enchytraeid sensitivity toward pesticides at different levels of biological organization, focusing on pesticides used in (mainly) European agroecosystems. Starting with non-standardized studies on the effects of pesticides on the sub-individual level, we compile the results of standard laboratory tests performed following OECD and ISO guidelines as well as those of higher-tier studies (i.e., semi-field and field tests). The number of comparable test data is still limited, because tests with enchytraeids are not a regulatory requirement in the European Union. While focusing on the effects of pesticides, attention is also given to their interactions with environmental stressors (e.g., climate change). In conclusion, we recommend to increase the use of enchytraeids in pesticide risk assessment because of their diversity and functional importance as well as their increasingly simplified use in (mostly standardized) tests at all levels of biological organization

Effects of two common fungicides on the reproduction of Aporrectodea caliginosa in natural soil

The use of pesticides in agroecosystems can have negative effects on earthworms, which play key roles in soil functioning such as organic matter decomposition. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of two fungicides (Cuprafor micro®, composed of copper oxychloride, and Swing Gold®, composed of epoxiconazole (EPX) and dimoxystrobin (DMX)) on earthworm reproduction by exposing adults and cocoons. First, adult Aporrectodea caliginosa individuals were exposed for 28 days to 3.33, 10 and 30 times the recommended dose (RD) of Cuprafor micro® corresponding to 25.8, 77.5 and 232.5 mg kg−1 dry soil of copper, respectively, and 0.33, 1 and 3 times the RD of Swing Gold® (corresponding to 5.2 × 10−2 mg DMX kg−1 + 1.94 × 10−2 mg EPX kg−1, 1.55 × 10−1 mg DMX kg−1 + 5.81 × 10−2 mg EPX kg−1 and 4.62 × 10−1 mg DMX kg−1 + 1.74 × 10−1 mg EPX kg−1 respectively), in addition to a control soil with no fungicide treatment. Cocoon variables (production, weight, hatching success, hatching time) were monitored. Second, “naïve” cocoons produced by uncontaminated earthworms were exposed to soils contaminated by the same concentrations of the two fungicides, and we assessed hatching success and hatching time. In the first experiment, cocoon production was halved at the highest copper concentration (232.5 mg Cu kg−1 of dry soil) as compared to the control. Cocoons took 5 more days to hatch, and the hatching success decreased by 35% as compared to the control. In the Swing Gold® treatments, cocoon production was reduced by 63% at 3 times the RD, and the hatching success significantly decreased by 16% at the RD. In the second experiment, only the hatching success of cocoons was impacted by Swing Gold® at 3 times the RD (30% less hatching). It is concluded that the cocoon stock in the soil is crucial for the renewal of populations in the field. The most sensitive endpoint was the hatching success of the cocoons produced by exposed adults. This endpoint and the effects observed on the “naïve” cocoons could be taken into account in pesticide risk assessment

Is there a solution to the spatial scale mismatch between ecological processes and agricultural management?

The major limit to develop robust landscape planning for biodiversity conservation is that the spatial levels of organization of landscape management by local actors rarely match with those of ecological processes. This problem, known as spatial scale mismatch, is recognized as a reason of lack of effectiveness of agri-environment schemes. We did a review to describe how authors identify the problem of spatial scale mismatch in the literature. The assumption is made that the solutions proposed in literature to conciliate agricultural management and conservation of biodiversity are based on theoretical frameworks that can be used to go towards an integration of management processes and ecological processes. Hierarchy Theory and Landscape Ecology are explicitly mobilized by authors who suggest multiscale and landscape scale approaches, respectively, to overcome the mismatch problem. Coordination in management is proposed by some authors but with no theoretical background explicitly mentioned. The theory of organization of biological systems and the theories of Social-Ecological Systems use the concept of coordination and integration as well as concepts of organization, adaptive capabilities and complexity of systems. These theories are useful to set up a new framework integrating ecological processes and agricultural management. Based on this review we made two hypotheses to explain difficulties to deal with spatial scale mismatch: (1) authors generally do not have an integrated approach since they consider separately ecological and management processes, and (2) an inaccurate use of terminology and theoretical frameworks partially explain the inadequacy of proposed solutions. We then specify some terms and highlight some ‘rules’ necessary to set up an integrative theoretical and methodological framework to deal with spatial scale mismatch.(Presentation des résumés n°186, p. 95-96, non paginé

Earthworms mitigate pesticide effects on soil microbial activities

Earthworms act synergistically with microorganisms in soils. They are ecosystem engineers involved in soil organic matter degradation and nutrient cycling, leading to the modulation of resource availability for all soil organisms. Using a soil microcosm approach, we aimed to assess the influence of the earthworm Aporrectodea caliginosa on the response of soil microbial activities against two fungicides, i.e. Cuprafor micro® (copper oxychloride, a metal) and Swing® Gold (epoxiconazole and dimoxystrobin, synthetic organic compounds). The potential nitrification activity (PNA) and soil enzyme activities (glucosidase, phosphatase, arylamidase, and urease) involved in biogeochemical cycling were measured at the end of the incubation period, together with earthworm biomass. Two common indices of the soil biochemistry were used to aggregate the response of the soil microbial functioning: the geometric mean (Gmean) and the Soil Quality Index (SQI). At the end of the experiment, the earthworm biomass was not impacted by the fungicide treatments. Overall, in the earthworm-free soil microcosms, the two fungicides significantly increased several soil enzyme and nitrification activities, leading to a higher GMean Index as compared to the non-treated control soils. The microbial activity responses depended on the type of activity (nitrification was the most sensitive one), on the fungicide (Swing® Gold or Cuprafor micro®), and on the doses. The SQI indices revealed higher effects of both fungicides on the soil microbial activity in the absence of earthworms. The presence of earthworms enhanced all soil microbial activities in both the control and fungicide-contaminated soils. Moreover, the magnitude of the fungicide impact, integrated through the SQI index, was mitigated by the presence of earthworms, conferring a higher stability of microbial functional diversity. Our results highlight the importance of biotic interactions in the response of indicators of soil functioning (i.e., microbial activity) to pesticides

Agroecosystem management and biotic interactions: a review

Increasing the use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides in agroecosystems has led to higher crop yields, accompanied by a decline in biodiversity at the levels of field, cropping system and farm. Biodiversity decline has been favoured by changes at landscape level such as regional farm specialisation, increases in field size, and the removal of hedgerows and woodlots. The loss of biodiversity in agroecosystems has increased the need for external inputs because beneficial functions are no longer provided by beneficial species as natural enemies of crop pests and ecosystem engineers. This trend has led to a strong reliance on petrochemicals in agroecosystems. However, many scientists have been arguing for more than two decades that this reliance on petrochemicals could be considerably reduced by a better use of biotic interactions. This article reviewsoptions to increase beneficial biotic interactions in agroecosystems and to improve pest management and crop nutrition whilst decreasing petrochemical use. Four agronomic options are presented. First, it has been shown that the choice of cultivar, the sowing date and nitrogen fertilisation practices can be manipulated to prevent interactions between pests and crop, in either time or space. Nevertheless, the efficacy of these manipulations may be limited by pest adaptation. Second, beneficial biotic interactions may result from appropriate changes to the habitats of natural enemies and ecosystem engineers, mediated by soil and weed management. Here, knowledge is scarce, and indirect and complex effects are poorly understood. Third, changes achieved by crop diversification and, fourth, by landscape adaptation are promising. However, these practices also present drawbacks that may not necessarily be outweighed by beneficial effects. Overall, these four management approaches provide a powerful framework to develop sustainable agronomic practices

Farmland biodiversity and agricultural management on 237 farms in 13 European and two African regions

Farmland is a major land cover type in Europe and Africa and provides habitat for numerous species. The severe decline in farmland biodiversity of the last decades has been attributed to changes in farming practices, and organic and low-input farming are assumed to mitigate detrimental effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity. Since the farm enterprise is the primary unit of agricultural decision making, management-related effects at the field scale need to be assessed at the farm level. Therefore, in this study, data were collected on habitat characteristics, vascular plant, earthworm, spider, and bee communities and on the corresponding agricultural management in 237 farms in 13 European and two African regions. In 15 environmental and agricultural homogeneous regions, 6–20 farms with the same farm type (e.g., arable crops, grassland, or specific permanent crops) were selected. If available, an equal number of organic and non-organic farms were randomly selected. Alternatively, farms were sampled along a gradient of management intensity. For all selected farms, the entire farmed area was mapped, which resulted in total in the mapping of 11 338 units attributed to 194 standardized habitat types, provided together with additional descriptors. On each farm, one site per available habitat type was randomly selected for species diversity investigations. Species were sampled on 2115 sites and identified to the species level by expert taxonomists. Species lists and abundance estimates are provided for each site and sampling date (one date for plants and earthworms, three dates for spiders and bees). In addition, farmers provided information about their management practices in face-to-face interviews following a standardized questionnaire. Farm management indicators for each farm are available (e.g., nitrogen input, pesticide applications, or energy input). Analyses revealed a positive effect of unproductive areas and a negative effect of intensive management on biodiversity. Communities of the four taxonomic groups strongly differed in their response to habitat characteristics, agricultural management, and regional circumstances. The data has potential for further insights into interactions of farmland biodiversity and agricultural management at site, farm, and regional scale

Modélisation de la dynamique d'une population de vers de terre Lumbricus terrestris au champ. <br />Contribution à l'étude de l'impact des systèmes de culture sur les communautés lombriciennes

Earthworms, which represent a major component of soil macrofauna, are often presented as biodiversity and soil quality indicators. Moreover, they are deemed to be ecosystem engineers since they directly or indirectly impact the availability of resources to other species as plants and microorganisms. Earthworms play a central role in the ecological functioning of agroecosystems thanks to their contribution to processes influencing physical, chemical and biological soil components.This work is aimed at understanding and modelling earthworm population dynamics in cultivated fields and to study the impact of cropping systems on earthworm communities. Our model, WORMDYN, is a stochastic stage-based Lefkovitch matrix model which accounts for vertical migrations and predicts Lumbricus terrestris dynamics in ploughed and superficially tilled plots (Grignon, France). In the model, the earthworm population is divided into four developmental stages (cocoons, juveniles, sub-adults, and adults) and life cycle parameters depend on soil temperature and water content which are the main factors influencing L. terrestris short-term dynamics. The model parameters were estimated from the available literature. This study of L. terrestris population dynamics entailed many samplings in cultivated fields. However, various methods are classically used for earthworm samplings. We thus wanted to determine the most suitable earthworm sampling method, combining efficiency and manipulator safety. The first part of this work thus presents the comparison of three chemical expellants for earthworm sampling.Then, WORMDYN structure is presented, as well as the comparison between model outputs and experimental data. A sensitivity analysis was carried out to identify the parameters which should be estimated with a higher precision in order to improve the predictive capabilities of the model.Finally, to assess the impact of cropping systems on earthworm communities, data were collected in a long-term trial including three cropping systems: a conventional system, a "Direct seeding living Mulch-based Cropping system" and an organic system without fertilisation. Results were used to study WORMDYN behaviour in these situations and to get information to improve model performance.Les lombriciens représentent une composante majeure de la macrofaune du sol et sont souvent présentés comme bioindicateurs de la biodiversité et de la qualité du sol. Par ailleurs, ils sont des ingénieurs de l'écosystème car ils modifient directement ou indirectement la disponibilité des ressources pour d'autres organismes tels que les plantes et les microorganismes. Ils ont un rôle important dans les agrosystèmes car ils participent aux processus qui influencent les composantes physique, chimique et biologique du sol.L'enjeu majeur de ce travail est de comprendre et de modéliser l'évolution des populations de lombriciens dans un champ cultivé et d'étudier l'impact de certains systèmes de culture sur les communautés lombriciennes. L'outil que nous avons mis en place, WORMDYN est un modèle stochastique de dynamique des populations basé sur un modèle matriciel et structuré en classes de stades de développement (cocons, juvéniles, sub-adultes et adultes). Il prédit l'évolution des populations du ver L. terrestris dans des parcelles labourées et dans des parcelles travaillées superficiellement. Les paramètres de ce modèle, estimés en partie grâce à des données issues de la littérature, dépendent de la température et de l'humidité du sol qui sont les facteurs clés influençant la dynamique à court terme de cette espèce de vers de terre. Ce travail de thèse comporte une première partie méthodologique. L'étude de la dynamique des populations lombriciennes a nécessité un nombre important de prélèvements en champ cultivé. Or, diverses méthodes sont classiquement utilisées pour l'échantillonnage des lombriciens. Nous avons donc cherché à déterminer la méthode de prélèvement la plus adéquate, c'est-à-dire alliant efficacité et sécurité du manipulateur. Une première partie est donc consacrée à l'étude et à la comparaison de trois produits chimiques utilisés pour le prélèvement des lombriciens.Dans un deuxième temps, la thèse présente la structure du modèle WORMDYN. La capacité du modèle à représenter la réalité est testée en confrontant les sorties aux mesures faites en parcelles expérimentales. Une analyse de sensibilité désigne les paramètres influençant fortement les sorties du modèle et met ainsi en évidence des pistes d'amélioration possibles.Enfin, dans le but de discuter des impacts de systèmes de culture sur les communautés lombriciennes, nous avons récolté des données sur un essai de longue durée comprenant trois systèmes : biologique, conventionnel et un système sous couvert végétal permanent. Par ailleurs, les résultats nous permettent d'étudier le comportement de WORMDYN dans d'autres situations et de dégager des pistes d'amélioration du modèle

Are Enchytraeidae (Oligochaeta, Annelida) good indicators of agricultural management practices?

Anthropogenic activities and particularly agricultural management may harm soil organisms such as enchytraeids (Enchytraeidae, Oligochaeta, Annelida), also known as potworms. These small relatives of earthworms are widely distributed in different soils and land use forms, where they play an important role due to their burrowing activity, their fecal pellet production as well as their transport, ingestion and mixing of mineral and organic soil particles. However, relatively few studies have been performed with these organisms at crop sites – and this widely scattered information has not yet been compiled. Thus, this paper aims (i) to assess the relevance of enchytraeids as indicators of agricultural practices and cropping systems, and (ii) to pinpoint the knowledge gaps and the needs for further research. Out of 250 papers identified in a literature search about 70 were reviewed in detail. Contrasted results and no clear relationships between agricultural practices and the composition and activity of enchytraeid communities have been found in this review, since rarely one factor affecting enchytraeids has been studied alone, meaning that the study context is usually very complex, with several interactions which are difficult to assess. Almost never information about all factors potentially influencing enchytraeids is available and, finally, there are very few studies which had the same aims or designs, making them very difficult to compare even without considering the heterogeneity of agricultural sites in space and time. However, this review concludes that enchytraeids can be considered as indicators of management practices (e.g. soil tillage, inorganic fertilizers) since they are sensitive to changes, both in terms of abundance and species composition. Finally, it is recommended to perform a monitoring program at representative, well documented European sites in which not only the enchytraeid communities but also as many as possible factors influencing them are measured over a period of at least five years