PARENT SESSION
Organized Oral Session 14: Ecology of arable plants: Linking invertebrate and weed population dynamics
Organizer(s): J Cussans, A Mauchline, and K Gross
Tuesday, August 9, 8:00 AM - 11:30 AM, Meeting Room 511a, Level 5, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Invertebrate trophic relations under contrasting cropping systems.
Hawes, Cathy1, Bohan, David2, Haughton, Alison2, Clark, Suzanne2, Squire, Geoff1, 1 Scottish Crop Research Institute, Dundee, UK2 Rothamsted ResearchDivision of Plant and Invertebrate Ecology, Harpenden, UK
ABSTRACT- Classification of invertebrates according to their trophic role in arable ecosystems is used to describe the interactions between resource and consumer groups in different cropping systems. Effects of autumn compared to spring cropping, and conventional compared to GMHT herbicide management are assessed across three crop types; maize, beet and oilseed rape. Results indicate that consumer groups are sensitive to changes in the availability of their resource and that dynamics are likely to be regulated by a combination of top-down and bottom-up trophic processes. Invertebrate dynamics were more sensitive to sowing period and crop type than to GMHT and conventional herbicide regimes. The balance of crop types in a region and the proportion of autumn and spring sown varieties are important factors that determine diversity and functioning of arable foodwebs.
Key words: trophic interactions, arable management, invertebrate dynamics