Artificial light at night reduces earthworm activity but increases growth of invasive ragweed

IF 3.4 Q1 Agricultural and Biological Sciences
Marion Mittmannsgruber, Zenia Kavassilas, Bernhard Spangl, Edith Gruber, Elias Jagg, Johann G. Zaller
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Artificial light at night, also referred to as light pollution (LP), has been shown to affect many organisms. However, little is known about the extent to which ecological interactions between earthworms and plants are altered by LP. We investigated the effects of LP on anecic earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris) that come to the surface at night to forage and mate, and on the germination and growth of the invasive and allergenic ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia). In a full factorial pot experiment in the greenhouse, we tested four factors and their interactions: LP (5 lux vs. 0 lux at night), earthworms (two individuals vs. none), plant species (seeding of ragweed only vs. mixed with Phacelia seeds) and sowing depth (seed placed at the surface vs. in 5 cm depth). Data were analysed using Generalized Linear (Mixed) Models and multifactorial ANOVAs with soil parameters as covariates. Light pollution reduced earthworm surface activity by 76% as measured by casting activity and toothpick index; 85% of mating earthworms were observed in the absence of LP. Light pollution in interaction with earthworms reduced ragweed germination by 33%. However, LP increased ragweed height growth by 104%. Earthworms reduced ragweed germination especially when seeds were placed on the soil surface, suggesting seed consumption by earthworms. Our data suggest that anecic earthworms are negatively affected by LP because reduced surface activity limits their ability to forage and mate. The extent to which earthworm-induced ecosystem services or community interactions are also affected by LP remains to be investigated. If the increased height growth of ragweed leads to increased pollen and seed production, it is likely that the competition of ragweed with field crops and the risks to human health will also increase under LP.
夜间人工照明减少了蚯蚓的活动,却增加了入侵豚草的生长
夜间的人造光,也称为光污染(LP),已被证明会影响许多生物。然而,人们对蚯蚓和植物之间的生态互动受 LP 影响的程度知之甚少。我们研究了光污染对夜间到地表觅食和交配的蚯蚓(Lumbricus terrestris)的影响,以及对入侵性和过敏性豚草(Ambrosia artemisiifolia)发芽和生长的影响。在温室进行的全因子盆栽实验中,我们测试了四个因子及其相互作用:光照度(夜间 5 勒克斯与 0 勒克斯)、蚯蚓(两只与一只都没有)、植物种类(只播种豚草种子与混合法桐种子)和播种深度(将种子放在地表与放在 5 厘米深处)。数据分析采用了广义线性(混合)模型和多因素方差分析,并将土壤参数作为协变量。通过投食活动和牙签指数测量,光污染使蚯蚓地表活动减少了 76%;在无 LP 的情况下,85% 的交配蚯蚓被观察到。光污染与蚯蚓的相互作用使豚草发芽率降低了 33%。然而,LP 可使豚草的生长高度增加 104%。蚯蚓降低了豚草的发芽率,尤其是当种子被放置在土壤表面时,这表明蚯蚓消耗了种子。我们的数据表明,无刺蚯蚓受到 LP 的负面影响,因为地表活动减少限制了它们觅食和交配的能力。蚯蚓诱导的生态系统服务或群落互动在多大程度上也受到 LP 的影响还有待研究。如果豚草生长高度的增加导致花粉和种子产量的增加,那么在低浓度生产条件下,豚草与大田作物的竞争以及对人类健康的危害也可能会增加。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
BMC Evolutionary Biology
BMC Evolutionary Biology 生物-进化生物学
CiteScore
5.80
自引率
0.00%
发文量
0
审稿时长
6 months
期刊介绍: BMC Evolutionary Biology is an open access, peer-reviewed journal that considers articles on all aspects of molecular and non-molecular evolution of all organisms, as well as phylogenetics and palaeontology.
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