A Simple, Safe, and Effective Sampling Technique for Investigating Earthworm Communities in Woodland Soils: Implications for Citizen Science

Basil V. Iannone; Lauren G. Umek; David H. Wise; Liam Heneghan

doi:10.3375/043.032.0305

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1 July 2012 A Simple, Safe, and Effective Sampling Technique for Investigating Earthworm Communities in Woodland Soils: Implications for Citizen Science

Basil V. Iannone, Lauren G. Umek, David H. Wise, Liam Heneghan

Author Affiliations +

Basil V. Iannone,^1,*,** Lauren G. Umek,^2,*** David H. Wise,^3,**** Liam Heneghan^2,*****

¹1Department of Biological Sciences (MC 066) University of Illinois at Chicago 845 W. Taylor St. Chic
²2Department of Environmental Science and Studies DePaul University 1110 W Belden Chicago, IL 60614
³3Institute for Environmental Science and Policy and Department of Biological Sciences University of

^*Corresponding author: bianno2@uic.edu; 312-355-3231
^**Basil Iannone is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and a fellow in both the NSF-funded Landscape, Ecological, and Anthropogenic Processes IGERT program, and the Institute for Environmental Science and Policy. His research focuses on the effects of interactions among individual species, community composition, and ecosystem-level processes on community change over time, particularly in the context of biological invasions and ecological restorations.
^***Lauren Umek is a Project Coordinator in the Environmental Science Department at DePaul University. Her research interests include plant-soil interactions with plant invasions and ecological restoration.
^****David Wise is Associate Director of the Institute for Environmental Science and Policy, and Professor of Ecology and Evolution in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago. His research interests include the structure and dynamics of detritus-based terrestrial food webs, and the dynamics, both ecological and human, of conserving and restoring natural areas in heavily populated metropolitan landscapes.
^*****Liam Heneghan is a professor of Environmental Science at DePaul University. His is co-chair of the Chicago Wilderness Science team. His research interests are in incorporating insights from soil ecology into restoration practice.

Natural Areas J., 32(3):283-292 (2012). https://doi.org/10.3375/043.032.0305

Abstract

We evaluated the efficacy of a mixture of ground hot mustard and water as a sampling method for earthworms (Lumbricina) in research projects involving citizen scientists. To do so we conducted a field experiment to determine if sampling earthworms using mustard-powder would reveal similar patterns of earthworm abundance and community composition as relying on the more difficult to prepare, and possibly hazardous, allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) solution. Earthworms were sampled using either mustard or AITC in four pairs of 0.25-m² plots located in each of four woodland sites that were predicted to exhibit a range of earthworm densities. Soil gravimetric water content (GWC) of each plot was quantified as a covariate. For analyses of changes in abundance and community structure, earthworms were classified as belonging to one of five groups based on where they occur in the soil profile, developmental stage, and level of taxonomic identification. The two sampling techniques revealed similar earthworm abundances and community composition across the four sites (all Ps > 0.16) and across the range in GWC (all Ps > 0.36). We conclude that using the mustard-water mixture to sample earthworms at our study site appears to be just as effective and reliable as using AITC. The mustard-water mixture, which is easier to prepare and is less hazardous than AITC solution, should, therefore, be considered as an appropriate tool to be utilized by researchers who collaborate with citizen scientists to help collect the large datasets needed to reveal how woodland management and restoration programs affect earthworms.

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Basil V. Iannone, Lauren G. Umek, David H. Wise, and Liam Heneghan "A Simple, Safe, and Effective Sampling Technique for Investigating Earthworm Communities in Woodland Soils: Implications for Citizen Science," Natural Areas Journal 32(3), 283-292, (1 July 2012). https://doi.org/10.3375/043.032.0305

Published: 1 July 2012

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