Summary
The ability of earthworms to assimilate soil organic pools of different ages was investigated in field conditions through natural 13C labelling. Provided that 13C natural abundance of earthworm tissues is determined by their diet, the assimilation of soil organic matter by earthworms was estimated by measuring 13C/12C ratio of tissues of earthworms sampled in soils containing organic pools with differing 13C/12C ratios. Earthworms were collected in two locations where the vegetation shifted from a C3 to a C4 type (France), or from a C4 to a C3 type (Ivory Coast) 3 to 20 years ago. The results show that irrespective of their ecology (litter or soil-feeding), earthworms mainly feed on recent soil organic pools and assimilate soil organic matter with the same age distribution as the overall decomposers in the soil.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Balabane M, Balesdent J (1992) Fertilizer derived N input to soil organic matter throughout a field conditions maize growing season. Soil Biology Biochem 24:89–96
Balesdent J, Wagner GH, Mariotti A (1988) Soil organic matter turnover in long term fied experiments as revealed by the 13C natural abundance tracer technics. Soil Science Society of America Journal 52:118–124
Balesdent J, Mariotti A, Boisgontier D (1990) Effect of tillage on soil organic carbon mineralization estimated from 13C abundance in maize fields. Journal of Soil Science 41:587–596
Balesdent J, Balabane M (1992) Maize root-derived soil organic carbon estimated by natural 13C abundance. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 24:97–101
Barois I, Lavelle P (1986) Changes in respiration rate and some physicochemical properties of a tropical soil during transit through Pontoscolex corethrurus (Glossoscolecidae, Oligochæta). Soil Biology and Biochemistry 18:539–541
Benner R, Fogel M, Sprague E, Hodson R (1987) Depletion of 13C in lignin and its implications for stable carbon isotope studiers. Nature 329:708–710
Boström U, Lofs-Holmin A (1986) Growth of earthworms (Allobophora caliginosa) fed shoots and roots of barley, meadow fescue and lucerne studies in relation to particle size, Crude fiber Cont Tox 21:1–12
Bouché MB (1977) Stratégies lombriciennes. Ecol Bull (Stockolm) 25:122–132
Bouché MB (1984) Une méthode de mesure du débit d'éléments dans un sol non perturbé: azote et carbone des lombriciens (Lumbricidæ, Annelida). Pedobiologia 27:197–206
Bouché MB, Kretzschmar A (1974) La fonction écologique des Lombriciens. II. Recherches méthodologiques pour l'analyse du sol ingéré (étude du peuplement de la station RCP 165-PBI). Revue d'Ecologie et Biologie du Sol 11:127–139
Cooke A (1983) The effect of fungi on food selection by Lumbricus terrestris L. In: Satchell JE (ed). Earthworm Ecology. Chapman and Hall, London. pp 365–373
Cooke A, Luxton M (1980) Effect of microbes on food selection by Lumbricus terrestris. Revue d'Ecologie et Biologie du Sol 17:365–370
Cortez J, Hameed R (1988) Effets de la maturation des litières de ray-gras (Lolium perenne L.) dans le sol sur leur consommation et leur assimilation par Lumbricus terrestris L. Revue d'Ecologie et Biologie du Sol 25:397–412
Cortez J, Hameed R, Bouché MB (1989) C and N transfer in soil with or without earthworms fed with 14C-and 15N-labelled wheat straw. Soil Biol Biochem 21 (4):491–497
Craig H (1957) Isotopic standards for mass spectrometric analysis of carbon dioxide. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 3:53–92
De Niro MJ, Epstein S (1978) Influence of diet on the distribution of carbon isotopes of animals. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 42:495–506
Ferrière G (1980) Fonctions des Lombriciens. VII. Une méthode d'analyse de la matière organique végétale ingérée. Pedobiologia 20:263–273
Jenkinson DS (1965) Studies on the decomposition of plant material in soil. I. Losses of carbon from 14C labeled rye-grass incubated with soil in the field. J Soil Science 16:104–115
Jenkinson DS (1990) The turnover of organic carbon and nitrogen in soil. Philosoph Trans Royal Soc London B 329:361–368
Lavelle P, Schaefer R, Zaidi Z (1989) Soil ingestion and growth in Millsonia anomala, a tropical earthworm, as influenced by the quality of the organic matter ingested. Pedobiologia 33:379–388
Lavelle P, Spain AV, Blanchart E, Martin A, Martin S. The impact of soil fauna on the properties of soils in the humid tropics. Soil Science Society of America Journal, in press
Loquet M, Vinceslas M (1987) Cellulolyse et lignilolyse liées au tube digestif d'Eisenia foetida andrei Bouché. Revue d'Ecologie et Biologie du Sol 24:559–571
Martin A (1988) Etude du système de digestion mutualiste du ver de terre géophage Dichogaster terra-nigræ (Megascolescidæ). Annales de l'Université d'Abidjan XX:23–30
Martin A (1991) Short-term and long term-effect of the endogeic earthworm Millsonia anomala (Omodeo) (Megascolecidæ, Oligochaeta) of tropical savanna, on soil organic matter. Biol Fertil Soils, 11:234–238
Martin A, Mariotti A, Balesdent J, Lavelle P, Vuattoux R (1990) Estimate of organic matter turnover rate in a savanna soil by 13C natural abundance measurements. Soil Biol Biochem 22:517–523
Martin A, Mariotti A, Balesdent J, Lavelle P (1992) Estimate of soil organic matter assimilation by a geophagous tropical earthworm based on 13C natural abundance. Ecology 73(1):118–128
Nissenbaum A, Kaplan IR (1972) Chemical and isotopic evidence for the in situ origin of marine humic substances. Limnol Oceanogr 17:570–582
Parton WJ, Schimel DS, Cole CV, Ojima DS (1987) Analysis of factors controlling soil organic matter levels in Great Plains Grasslands. Soil Science Soc Am J 51:1173–1179
Piearce TG (1978) Gut contents of some lumbricid earthworms. Pedobiologia 18:153–157
Rouelle J (1983) Introduction of amoebæ and Rhizobium japonicum into the gut of Eisenia fetida (Sav.) and Lumbricus terrestris L. In: Satchell JE (ed) Earthworm Ecology. Chapman and Hall, London, GB, pp 375–381
Scharpenseel HW, Becker Heidmann P, Neue HU, Tsutsuki K (1989) Bombcarbon, 14C-dating and 13C-measurements as tracers of organic matter dynamics as well as of morphogenetic and turbation process. In: The Science of Total Environment. Elservier Science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, pp 99–110
Spain AV, Safigna PG, Wood AW (1990) Tissue carbon sources for Pontoscolex corethrurus (Oligochaeta, Glossoscolecidae) in a sugarcane ecosystem. Soil Biol Biochem 22 (5): 703–706
Van Gansen P (1962) Structures et fonctions du tube digestif du lombricien Eisenia fætida Savigny. J Microsc I:363 p
Wedeking KW, Hayes JM, Matzigkeit U (1983) Procedures of organic geochemical analyses. In: Schopf JW (ed). Earth's Earliest Biosphere. Its Origin and Evolution, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. pp 428–447
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Martin, A., Balesdent, J. & Mariotti, A. Earthworm diet related to soil organic matter dynamics through 13C measurements. Oecologia 91, 23–29 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00317236
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00317236