Abstract
The replacement of native Portuguese forests by Eucalyptus globulus is often associated with deleterious effects on terrestrial and aquatic communities. Several studies have suggested that such a phenomenon is linked with the leaf essential oils released into the environment during the Eucalyptus leaf degradation process. However, to date, the way these compounds affect leaf degradation in terrestrial systems i.e. by direct toxic effects to soil invertebrates or indirectly by affecting food of soil fauna, is still unknown. In order to explore this question, the effect of essential oils extracted from E. globulus leaves on terrestrial systems was investigated. Fungal growth tests with species known as leaf colonizers (Mucor hiemalis, Alternaria alternata, Penicillium sp., Penicillium glabrum and Fusarium roseum) were performed to evaluate the antifungal effect of essential oils. In addition, a reproduction test with the collembolans Folsomia candida was done using a gradient of eucalyptus essential oils in artificial soil. The influence of essential oils on feeding behaviour of F. candida and the isopods Porcellio dilatatus was also investigated through food avoidance and consumption tests. Eucalyptus essential oils were lethal at concentrations between 2.5–20 µL/mL and inhibited growth of all fungal species between 1.25–5 µL/mL. The collembolan reproduction EC50 value was 35.0 (28.6–41.2) mg/kg and both collembola and isopods preferred leaves without oils. Results suggested that the effect of essential oils in leaf processing is related to direct toxic effects on fungi and soil fauna and to indirect effects on the quality and availability of food to soil invertebrates.
Highlights
During the last decades, the Portuguese native forests have been replaced by Eucalyptus spp. plantations [1]
Other studies have suggested that the reduced diversity of soil fauna in these forests is related to low nutrient content of the leaf litter and high concentrations of secondary compounds like essential oils and phenolic compounds [14,16]
Fungal growth test All fungal species were moderately affected by the eucalyptus essential oil
Summary
The Portuguese native forests have been replaced by Eucalyptus spp. plantations [1]. A large number of studies have suggested that these replacements induce losses in the diversity of the edaphic fauna of Portuguese forests [3,4,5], comprising losses of rare and endemic invertebrates (e.g. the collembola species Stenognathellus denisi and Folsomides navacerradensis) and the emergence of opportunistic species with high reproduction rates (e.g. the collembola species Xenilla brevisimilis mediterranea and Folsomia sexoculata; [4,5,6,7,8]) Such changes have been associated with a characteristic soil hydrophobicity, reduced hydraulic conductivity [9,10,11] and presence of allelopathic compounds [12,13], all contributing to a simplification of the habitat and the creation of essentially a monospecific forest [10,14,15]. Given the role of fungi and bacteria in increasing the palatability of leaves to consumers [25,26,27], these recent findings could explain an indirect influence of these compounds on soil invertebrates (namely detritivores and fungivores)
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