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Experimental warming of bryophytes increases the population density of the nematode Plectus belgicae in maritime Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 October 2020

Kevin K. Newsham Open the ORCID record for Kevin K. Newsham [Opens in a new window] ,
Richard J. Hall  and
N. Rolf Maslen
Kevin K. Newsham*
Affiliation:
British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, CambridgeCB3 0ET, UK
Richard J. Hall
Affiliation:
British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, CambridgeCB3 0ET, UK
N. Rolf Maslen
Affiliation:
British Antarctic Survey, Natural Environment Research Council, High Cross, Madingley Road, CambridgeCB3 0ET, UK
*
[email protected]
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Abstract

Despite nematodes routinely being the most frequent soil- and bryophyte-associated animals in maritime Antarctica, there is a lack of clarity about the influence of warming on their populations in the region. Here, we report the results of a field experiment on Adelaide Island that tested the effects of warming with open-top chambers (OTCs) for 37 months on nematodes associated with the bryophytes Cephaloziella varians and Sanionia uncinata. Over the experiment's duration, OTCs increased the population density of the nematode Plectus belgicae in mats of both bryophytes by six-fold, with four- to seven-fold increases in the abundances of male, female and juvenile P. belgicae in warmed mats, and with the largest effects on the abundances of juveniles. Despite C. varians, which is black in colour, warming to a greater extent than S. uncinata during summer, no interactive effects of OTCs and bryophyte species were recorded on the population density of P. belgicae. Our results corroborate a previous study showing that warming increases Plectus population densities in maritime Antarctic soils, with implications for the region's terrestrial food webs.

Keywords

Cephaloziella variansclimate warmingNematodaopen-top chambers (OTCs)Sanionia uncinata
Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 33 , Issue 2 , April 2021 , pp. 165 - 173
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Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2020

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