Character of woodland fragments affects distribution of myriapod assemblages in agricultural landscape

Abstract

Fragments of woodland fulfil many irreplaceable functions in the agricultural landscape including being the main source of biodiversity of soil invertebrates. Due to intensive farming and land use changes, especially in the second half of the 20th century, fragments of woodland in agricultural landscape almost disappeared. This has led to a decrease in the diversity of invertebrates, especially those for which the presence of these woodland habitats in the landscape is a key element for survival. The aim of this study was to evaluate the importance of fragments of woodland (characterised by their area, vegetation structure, the amount of leaf litter layer and soil moisture) on the distribution of centipedes and millipedes (Myriapoda) in the agricultural landscape of South Moravia (Czech Republic). Myriapods were collected using pitfall traps during summer in 2016 and 2017. Results showed that activity-density of myriapods is positively correlated with thickness of the leaf litter layer. Moreover, the species richness of centipedes is positively correlated with increasing size of fragments of woodland although higher centipedes’ activity-density was found in rather uniform woodlands in term of diversity of tree species.