Distribution of Soil Microbes in Urban Parks: An Effect of Under-Tree Crown and Hillside Position on Testate Amoeba Assemblages in Subtropics (Shenzhen, China)

Yuantan Zhong (), Aleksandr Ivanovskii, Jean Claude Ndayishimiye, Andrey N. Tsyganov, Kirill Babeshko, Damir Saldaev and Yuri Mazei
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Yuantan Zhong: Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China
Aleksandr Ivanovskii: Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China
Jean Claude Ndayishimiye: Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China
Andrey N. Tsyganov: Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskiye Gory 1, Moscow 119991, Russia
Kirill Babeshko: Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China
Damir Saldaev: Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China
Yuri Mazei: Faculty of Biology, Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, International University Park Road, Dayun New Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen 518172, China

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 12, 1-17

Abstract: Testate amoebae (TA) are important components of soil ecosystems, where they play an essential role in belowground food webs. In this study, we examined species composition, diversity, and structure of TA assemblages in soils beneath tree crowns (microscale) at three slope positions (mesoscale) in subtropical urban parks in Shenzhen, China. Forty-two species of TA belonging to 18 genera were identified in 81 samples. TA assemblages were the most diverse and abundant in the center of the tree crown comparing with other under-tree habitats. Foot of the hills harbored higher TA abundance and diversity comparing with upper locations along the hillslopes. The distribution of TA was mostly driven by under-crown and hillside positions but not by elementary environmental conditions such as pH, moisture content and thickness of leaf litter layer. None of later factors were sufficient in shaping TA assemblage composition. The findings of our study suggest that in regional studies of soil microbial eukaryotes both micro- (i.e., under-crown) and mesoscale (i.e., the slope position) heterogeneity should be considered.

Keywords: testate amoebae; tree crown; community structure; microspatial distribution; spatial heterogeneity; microscale heterogeneity; mesoscale heterogeneity; urban microbiome; subtropical parks (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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