title: Earthworm Preference Bioassays to Evaluate Land Management Practices.
abstract: Earthworm preference tests, especially in soil-dosed exposures, can be an informative tool for assessing land management practices. Agricultural management intended to increase crop yield and improve soil sustainability includes physical manipulation of topsoil through conventional tillage, reduced or no-tillage, and/or winter cover crops. Soil amendments include the addition of inorganic nitrogen or organic nitrogen derived from soil amendments including biosolids from sewage treatment plants, poultry litter, or locally available industrial effluent. This study used 48-h Eisenia fetida preference tests to assess impacts of agricultural management practices on soil macrofauna. Although in laboratory-dosed exposures, E. fetida preferred biosolid-dosed soils (80 %-95 % recovery) over control soils, the same results were not found with field soils receiving biosolid amendments (33 % recovery). Poultry litter-amended soils (68 % recovery) were preferred over control soils. No differences were measured between tilled fields and controls, and earthworms preferred control soils over those from fields with no-tillage and cover crops. Soil assessments through laboratory exposures such as these allows science-based agricultural management decisions to maintain or improve soil health.
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology Research Facility, Arkansas State University, PO Box 847, State University, AR, 72467, USA. jbouldin@astate.edu.|Department of Biological Sciences, Arkansas State University, PO Box 599, State University, AR, 72467, USA. jbouldin@astate.edu.|Division of Agriculture, University of Arkansas, PO Box 2340, State University, AR, 72467, USA. jbouldin@astate.edu.
authors.forename: Jennifer L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Bouldin
authors.affiliation: Ecotoxicology Research Facility, Arkansas State University, PO Box 847, State University, AR, 72467, USA.|Department of Biological Sciences, Arkansas State University, PO Box 599, State University, AR, 72467, USA.
authors.forename: John W P
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Klasky
authors.affiliation: Division of Agriculture, University of Arkansas, PO Box 2340, State University, AR, 72467, USA.|College of Agriculture and Technology, Arkansas State University, PO Box 1080, State University, AR, 72467, USA.
authors.forename: V Steven
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Green
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture / Q000379:methods*; D000818:Animals; D001681:Biological Assay; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000737:chemistry; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000032:analysis; D009835:Oligochaeta / Q000502:physiology*; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D009584:Nitrogen
keywords: Biosolids; Cover crops; Earthworm bioassays; Poultry litter; Soil quality; Tillage