Resource Catalog
Document
Although slugs (Mollusca: Gastropoda) are known to be important generalist herbivores, fungivores, and detrivores in a variety of ecosystems, little is known about their abundance and diversity in protected areas. Likewise, the presence of non-native slug species and their impacts on invaded ecosystems have also not been well documented. In this study, the abundance and diversity of native and non-native slugs was investigated in a sensitive protected area comprised of a recently burned black spruce (Picea mariana)-lichen (Cladonia) woodland in Terra Nova National Park, Newfoundland, Canada. To estimate the diversity and abundance of slugs, pitfall traps were established in areas of high-burn intensity, including sites within and at the edge of the burn, low-burn intensity, and a non-burned reference. Of the nine slug taxa known from Newfoundland, five were captured within burned sites; of those five taxa, only one, Deroceras laeve, is native. Almost 90% of captures were of non-native taxa; dominant slug taxa were the introduced Arion subfuscus aggregate (agg.) and A. hortensis agg. The majority of captures occurred at the edge of the burn, and least in the high-intensity open sites. Given that non-native species can dominate the slug fauna in naturally disturbed areas, it is recommended that monitoring for these non-native invasive species and their impact on native vegetation be implemented within protected areas. The invasive nature of non-native slugs and their pivotal role in in uencing biodiversity and plant regeneration suggests that these invertebrates are key elements within a monitoring framework of protected areas. © 2010 Natural Areas Association. Abstract reproduced by permission.
Cataloging Information
- alien species
- black spruce
- boreal forest
- boreal forests
- Canada
- Cladonia
- coniferous forests
- disturbance
- disturbance
- fire case histories
- fire intensity
- fire management
- Gastropoda
- invasive species
- invertebrates
- lichens
- mollusks
- mosaic
- national parks
- Newfoundland
- non-native slugs
- Picea
- population density
- regeneration
- soil moisture
- soil temperature
- spruce
- wildfires
- wildlife habitat management
This bibliographic record was either created or modified by Tall Timbers and is provided without charge to promote research and education in Fire Ecology. The E.V. Komarek Fire Ecology Database is the intellectual property of Tall Timbers.