Nematode Biodiversity in Soils of the Short Grass Steppe

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During this proof-of-concept project, an extensive survey of the diversity of terrestrial nematodes at two shortgrass steppe sites will be conducted, in order to assess whether it is worthwhile to conduct additional surveys of the same type in additional sites and habitats. Even though nematodes are known to be very important players in soil ecosystems, free-living soil nematodes from the shortgrass steppe are poorly known taxonomically. A taxonomic baseline will be established for these organisms, which will contribute to a better understanding of soil nematode communities and the role played by nematodes in ecosystem function. The shortgrasse steppe habitat was chosen for this initial project because it is likely to be affected by global climate change, and the two sites (Central Plains Experimental Range LTER and the Sevilleta LTER) were chosen because they have similar plant communities despite differences in annual rainfall. The results of this survey will therefore provide results that can be compared within the project itself as well as externally to results from other nematode surveys from other sorts of habitats. The databased results of the survey will be made available via the Internet from the LTER network server or another suitable server, and will for the first time bridge the gap between the taxonomy and ecology of soil nematodes in the shortgrass steppe biome. f8 Û-ª þ ; + +  ▓ªÛOÑ hª' +'ª▒0 ª + ) ╔ 2 8 D P \ d l x - v ± ++++++++++++++++ S u m m a r y I n f o r m a t i o n ( ++++++++++++ % ║ ++++++++++++ ++++++++++++ ++++++++++++ teria by Meredith's MacHD:Applications:Microsoft Word:Templates:Normal