Protostelids from boreal forest and tundra ecosystems in Alaska

Abstract

Six species of protostelids were recovered from litter samples collected from four study sites in Alaska. No protostelids were isolated from aerial litter (dead but still attached plant parts) collected in two boreal forest study sites, but four species were isolated from ground litter collected in these same sites. Two tundra study sites yielded all of the species recorded for forest study sites plus two additional species. At one of the boreal forest sites, substrate colonization rates for protostelids were obtained on sterile wheat straws in the two different litter microhabitats. Straws from aerial litter yielded four species of protostelids, whereas straws from ground litter yielded six species. In general, species richness of protostelids appears to be lower in high-latitude ecosystems than in the temperate forests and grasslands thus far examined.