Litter arthropods community in multifunctional landscapes: Spatial and temporal complementarity of Brazilian ecosystems

Abstract

In view of the heterogeneity of ecosystems that make up the Cerrado biome, frequent replacement of native vegetation by exotic components and typically seasonal climate, the present study aimed to investigate: (1) How litter arthropods communities are distributed in time and space in a multifunctional landscape in Cerrado biome, and (2) the importance of natural and anthropized ecosystems for the litter arthropod community in the dry and rainy seasons. The research was carried out in 12 sites in the Triângulo Mineiro region, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The study area is part the Cerrado biome and, of the 12 sites, three were composed of fragments of cerrado sensu stricto (s.s.), three by abandoned pastures, three by veredas and three by eucalypt plantation. The collection of litter arthropods occurred through pitfall traps in the dry and rainy seasons. The individuals collected were identified at the family level and categorized according to the trophic function and body size. Although the different ecosystems in isolation did not influence the quantitative parameters of arthropod communities, an important interaction between ecosystems and seasonality was observed. During the rainy season the litter arthropod communities in cerrado s.s. and veredas presented similar richness with slightly greater Simpson diversity in the cerrado s.s., but the veredas were much richer and diverse than other ecosystems in the dry season. A high diversity was also observed in the eucalypt plantations in the rainy season, but with a low functional richness. The functional and taxonomic compositions of the litter arthropod communities differed among ecosystems. In addition, even with a high richness in anthropized ecosystems, the communities present in the savannas were not similar to those present in anthropized ecosystems. Therefore, it was observed that the litter arthropod communities formed spatial and temporal mosaics that play complementary roles in supporting litter arthropod biodiversity.