Aracnidae diversity in soil cultivated with corn (Zea mays)

Authors

  • Lígia Vanessa da Silva Universidade de Cruz Alta
  • Ana Lúcia de Paula Ribeiro Universidade de Cruz Alta
  • Alessandro Dal'Col Lúcio Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5433/1679-0359.2014v35n4Suplp2395

Keywords:

Aranae, Pitfall, Transgenic corn, Conventional corn, Bacillus thurigiensis.

Abstract

Studies carried out on the diversity and abundance of spiders may provide a rich information base on the degree of integrity of agricultural systems where they are found. In transgenic corn, Bacillus thuringiensis proteins are expressed in great amounts in plant tissues and may affect arthropod communities. Thus, the main goal of this work was to identify the spider diversity associated to transgenic and conventional corn hybrids. Pitfall collections were performed in conventional and transgenic corn plots during the 2010/2011 crop season, at the experimental field of the Agronomy Course of the University of Cruz Alta, RS. A total of 559 spiders were collected, from which 263 were adults and 296 young individuals. In the transgenic corn 266 spiders were collected and in the conventional one 293. Eleven families were determined and the adult individuals grouped in 27 morphospecies. Families with the largest number of representatives were Linyphiidae (29.70%), Theridiidae (5.72%) and Lycosidae (5.01%). The most abundant morphospecies were Lyniphiidae sp. with 77 individuals, Erigone sp. with 40 individuals, Lynyphiidae sp. with 33 individuals, Theridiidae sp. with 21 individuals, Lycosa erythrognatha with 14 individuals and Lycosidae sp. with 13 individuals. The Shannon Diversity Index was higher for transgenic corn (H” =1.01) in February and smaller (H’=0.54) in the December collection in the conventional corn, and the Margaleff Richness Index showed higher diversity in December and February for the conventional corn (M=18.3), and smaller diversity for the transgenic corn in November (M=11.3). Families were classified in five guilds; two weavers: Irregular web builders and sheet web builders, and three hunter guilds: Night soil runners, ambush spiders and aerial night runners. The relative proportion of the spiders morphospecies found in this research, as well as the guilds, suggest that this group may not have been affected by the genetically modified corn.

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Author Biographies

Lígia Vanessa da Silva, Universidade de Cruz Alta

Engª Agrª, Drª em Fitossanidade, UNICRUZ, Cruz Alta, RS.

Ana Lúcia de Paula Ribeiro, Universidade de Cruz Alta

Bióloga, Especialista em Gestão e Desenvolvimento Sustentável do Meio Rural, UNICRUZ, Cruz Alta, RS.

Alessandro Dal'Col Lúcio, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

Eng° Agr°, Dr. em Agronomia, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, UFSM, Santa Maria, RS.

Published

2014-09-04

How to Cite

Silva, L. V. da, Ribeiro, A. L. de P., & Lúcio, A. D. (2014). Aracnidae diversity in soil cultivated with corn (Zea mays). Semina: Ciências Agrárias, 35(4Supl), 2395–2404. https://doi.org/10.5433/1679-0359.2014v35n4Suplp2395

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