Indicative Value of Soil Nematode Food Web Indices and Trophic Group Abundance in Differentiating Habitats with a Gradient of Anthropogenic Impact

Indicative value of nematode food web indices and trophic group abundance was assessed for differentiating habitats in two soil types. A total of 604 soil samples were collected from croplands, grassy borders, turfgrass lawns, shrublands and forests in Huron County, Ohio characterized by muck soils. Also, a total of 242 soil samples were collected from two habitats, turfgrass lawns and croplands, in Wayne County, Ohio characterized by mineral soils. All nematodes extracted from soil samples were identified to genus level, categorized to trophic groups and various nematode community indices were calculated. Multivariate analysis of variance using composite of nematode measures revealed that croplands were significantly different from forests, shrublands, turfgrass lawns and grassy borders in the muck soils. Turfgrass lawns in muck soils were not different from forests but were different from shrublands. No differences were observed between forests and shrublands. Turfgrass lawns in mineral soils differed s...