Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina

Southern Patagonia’s landscape hosts several semi-natural habitats, traditionally used for sheep production, such as Mulguraea tridens and Lepidophyllum cupressiforme scrublands. Mulguraea scrublands are managed via mechanical shredding to remove shrubs and increase grass availability, alternating w...

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Autores principales: Sola, Francisco Javier, Peri, Pablo Luis, Huertas, Laura Eugenia, Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José, Lencinas, María Vanessa
Formato: info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: Springer 2018
Materias:
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/3138
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10841-016-9918-2#citeas
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author Sola, Francisco Javier
Peri, Pablo Luis
Huertas, Laura Eugenia
Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José
Lencinas, María Vanessa
author_browse Huertas, Laura Eugenia
Lencinas, María Vanessa
Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José
Peri, Pablo Luis
Sola, Francisco Javier
author_facet Sola, Francisco Javier
Peri, Pablo Luis
Huertas, Laura Eugenia
Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José
Lencinas, María Vanessa
author_sort Sola, Francisco Javier
collection INTA Digital
description Southern Patagonia’s landscape hosts several semi-natural habitats, traditionally used for sheep production, such as Mulguraea tridens and Lepidophyllum cupressiforme scrublands. Mulguraea scrublands are managed via mechanical shredding to remove shrubs and increase grass availability, alternating with structural-retention strips. We analyzed the influence of structural-retention management (with cut and retention strips) in Mulguraea scrublands with regards to above-ground arthropod community structure, as well as differences between the two natural scrubland types. We worked in Santa Cruz Province (Argentina) with pitfall traps during two summers in the first 2 years after mechanical shredding. Richness, abundance, occurrence frequency, Shannon–Wiener diversity and Pielou evenness indices, and similarity among assemblages were evaluated using univariate and multivariate statistical tests. Complementarily, we described vegetation ground cover and microclimate. We collected 3279 individuals from 38 species belonging to Insecta and Arachnida Classes. Shannon–Wiener diversity and Pielou evenness indices, as well as the overall assemblages, differed significantly between managed cut strips and natural Mulguraea scrublands, mainly due to the loss and introduction of species from surrounding environments; abundance also differed in the first sampling year compared to the second year. Likewise, managed retention strips allowed the partial maintenance of arthropod community structure and had a microclimate that was similar to natural Mulguraea scrublands, although assemblages in managed cut and retention strips became more similar among themselves in the second sampling year. On the other hand, richness, abundance and assemblage of both natural scrubland types differed significantly, with 87 % more indicator species in Mulguraea than in Lepidophyllum scrublands. Greater dissimilarity occurred between both natural scrubland types in dryer years, which could be related with an El Niño Southern Oscillation event. If arthropod community structure changes prove stable over time, mechanical shredding with structural-retention management would allow for an increase in the sheep carrying capacity, while reducing impacts to the arthropod community, thus providing a viable compromise between productivity and conservation in a fragile arid environment. More studies are necessary to evaluate long term changes in above-ground arthropod community structure of scrublands in arid zones of southern Patagonia.
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spelling INTA31382018-08-21T18:46:19Z Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina Sola, Francisco Javier Peri, Pablo Luis Huertas, Laura Eugenia Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José Lencinas, María Vanessa Arthropoda Organismos del Suelo Tierras de Matorral Formicidae Coleoptera Soil Organisms Scrublands Escorpiones Scorpiones Camel Spiders Xeric Landscape Santa Cruz Southern Patagonia’s landscape hosts several semi-natural habitats, traditionally used for sheep production, such as Mulguraea tridens and Lepidophyllum cupressiforme scrublands. Mulguraea scrublands are managed via mechanical shredding to remove shrubs and increase grass availability, alternating with structural-retention strips. We analyzed the influence of structural-retention management (with cut and retention strips) in Mulguraea scrublands with regards to above-ground arthropod community structure, as well as differences between the two natural scrubland types. We worked in Santa Cruz Province (Argentina) with pitfall traps during two summers in the first 2 years after mechanical shredding. Richness, abundance, occurrence frequency, Shannon–Wiener diversity and Pielou evenness indices, and similarity among assemblages were evaluated using univariate and multivariate statistical tests. Complementarily, we described vegetation ground cover and microclimate. We collected 3279 individuals from 38 species belonging to Insecta and Arachnida Classes. Shannon–Wiener diversity and Pielou evenness indices, as well as the overall assemblages, differed significantly between managed cut strips and natural Mulguraea scrublands, mainly due to the loss and introduction of species from surrounding environments; abundance also differed in the first sampling year compared to the second year. Likewise, managed retention strips allowed the partial maintenance of arthropod community structure and had a microclimate that was similar to natural Mulguraea scrublands, although assemblages in managed cut and retention strips became more similar among themselves in the second sampling year. On the other hand, richness, abundance and assemblage of both natural scrubland types differed significantly, with 87 % more indicator species in Mulguraea than in Lepidophyllum scrublands. Greater dissimilarity occurred between both natural scrubland types in dryer years, which could be related with an El Niño Southern Oscillation event. If arthropod community structure changes prove stable over time, mechanical shredding with structural-retention management would allow for an increase in the sheep carrying capacity, while reducing impacts to the arthropod community, thus providing a viable compromise between productivity and conservation in a fragile arid environment. More studies are necessary to evaluate long term changes in above-ground arthropod community structure of scrublands in arid zones of southern Patagonia. EEA Santa Cruz Fil: Sola, Francisco Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas. Laboratorio de Recursos Agroforestales; Argentina Fil: Peri, Pablo Luis. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Santa Cruz; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Huertas, Laura Eugenia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia Austral; Argentina Fil: Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas. Laboratorio de Recursos Agroforestales; Argentina Fil: Lencinas, María Vanessa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas. Laboratorio de Recursos Agroforestales; Argentina 2018-08-21T18:38:45Z 2018-08-21T18:38:45Z 2016-12 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/3138 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10841-016-9918-2#citeas 1366-638X 1572-9753 (Online) eng info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess application/pdf Springer Journal of insect conservation 20 (6) : 929–944. (December 2016)
spellingShingle Arthropoda
Organismos del Suelo
Tierras de Matorral
Formicidae
Coleoptera
Soil Organisms
Scrublands
Escorpiones
Scorpiones
Camel Spiders
Xeric Landscape
Santa Cruz
Sola, Francisco Javier
Peri, Pablo Luis
Huertas, Laura Eugenia
Martínez Pastur, Guillermo José
Lencinas, María Vanessa
Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina
title Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina
title_full Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina
title_fullStr Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina
title_full_unstemmed Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina
title_short Above-ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural-retention management in southern Patagonian scrublands, Argentina
title_sort above ground arthropod community structure and influence of structural retention management in southern patagonian scrublands argentina
topic Arthropoda
Organismos del Suelo
Tierras de Matorral
Formicidae
Coleoptera
Soil Organisms
Scrublands
Escorpiones
Scorpiones
Camel Spiders
Xeric Landscape
Santa Cruz
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/3138
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10841-016-9918-2#citeas
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