Impact of cattle grazing on prostigmatid mite densities in grassland soils of southern interior British Columbia

Abstract

Soil mesofauna are an important part of soil ecosystems, but little is known about them in grassland ecosystems of southern interior British Columbia. In this s tudy, 12 300 organisms were examined and prostigmatid mites were most abundant, representing 95% of the total collection. Cattle grazing, sample depth and season of sampling influenced prostigmatid mite densities. However, grazing was the most significant factor, explaining 29% of the variation in prostigmatid mite density. Key words: Soil fauna, mesofauna, Prostigmata, Acari, range management