@article {KNZ00361, title = {Localized dynamics of earthworm populations in relation to bison dung in North American tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Soil Biology \& Biochemistry}, volume = {24}, year = {1992}, pages = {1471 -1476}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.1016/0038-0717(92)90135-K}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ00362, title = {Seasonal and experimental variation in population structure of earthworms in tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Soil Biology \& Biochemistry}, volume = {24}, year = {1992}, pages = {1445 -1449}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.1016/0038-0717(92)90131-G}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ00382, title = {Soil invertebrate and plant responses to mowing and Carbofuran application in a North American tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Plant and Soil}, volume = {144}, year = {1992}, pages = {117 -124}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.1007/BF00018852}, author = {Todd, T.C. and James, S.W. and Seastedt, T.R.} } @article {KNZ00323, title = {Soil, nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic matter processing by earthworms in tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Ecology}, volume = {72}, year = {1991}, pages = {2101 -2109}, abstract = {

Earthworms represent the dominant fraction of soil macroinvertebrate biomass in Kansas tallgrass prairie and thus may have a large impact on nutrient budgets. To evaluate this impact I estimated cast production and rates of nutrient processing by the native genus Diplocardia and by exotic Lumbricidae in permanent plots on two soil types at Konza Prairie Research Natural Area. Total cast production was estimated from field population estimates, soil climate data, and cast production-temperature relationships obtained in the laboratory. The organic matter and mineral N and P contents of surface casts by month were used to estimate total processing of these substances in the field. Earthworms present in the study sites were Diplocardia longiseta, D. kansensis, D. rugosa, D. singularis, D. smithii, D. verrucosa, and the European species Aporrectodea caliginosa and Octolasion cyaneum. Estimated total cast production and nutrient processing by Diplocardia spp. exceeded that of exotics in both soil types, in spite of higher populations of Lumbricidae in one soil. Total annual soil consumption by all earthworms was 4-10\% of the A- horizon, depending on the soil type. Organic matter equivalent to 10\% of total soil organic matter in the top 15 cm or to 100-300\% of plant annual belowground production appears to pass through the earthworms each year. Mineral N processed was approximately 10-12\% of annual plant N uptake, comparable to half of the input from precipitation, while the P processed was equivalent to 50\% of annual uptake. In contrast to other grassland systems studied, the introduction of Lumbricidae had a negative effect on soil turnover and nutrient mineralization due to the lower throughput of Lumbricidae and their relative intolerance of summer soil temperatures. Key words: Aporrectodea, Diplocardia, earthworms, invasion ecology, native vs exotic species, nutrient cycling, Octolasion, organic matter, N and P in feces, soil turnover, tallgrass prairie

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.2307/1941562}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ00294, title = {Field bioassessment for selecting test systems to evaluate military training lands in tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Ecosystem Health.V.1 Environmental Management}, volume = {14}, year = {1990}, pages = {81 -93}, abstract = {

Ecosystems responses to physical or chemical stress may vary from changes in single organisms to alteration of the structure and function of the ecosystem. These responses to stress cannot be predicted exactly. Ecosystems repeatedly exposed to physical and/or chemical stress can be used to study the separate and combined environmental effects of stress. Such studies also allow the development of procedures to select test systems for the analysis of stress in ecosystems. A preliminary field survey of six military training sites at Fort Riley, Kansas, USA, was conducted to identify and verify ecological test systems for evaluating ecosystem responses to physical and/or chemical stress. Comparisons of these data with data collected concurrently from Konza Prairie Research Natural Area reference sites showed that soil microarthropods, some species of macroarthropods, small mammals, and native earthworm species were negatively affected by stress. In contrast, plant species diversity, plant foliage biomass, soil mycorrhizae, and many soil characteristics were within the boundaries of nominal variations observed on \"pristine\" Konza Prairie. Introduced European earthworms appeared to be positively affected by training activities. This study provided a test of systematic procedures to support impact analysis, ecological toxicology, and ecosystem risk assessment

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.1007/BF02394022}, author = {Schaeffer, D.J. and Seastedt, T.R. and D.J. Gibson and D.C. Hartnett and Hetrick, B.A.D. and James, S.W. and D.W. Kaufman and Schwab, A.P. and Herricks, E.E. and Novak, E.W.} } @article {KNZ00237, title = {Feeding ecology of some earthworms in Kansas tallgrass prairie}, journal = {The American Midland Naturalist}, volume = {121}, year = {1989}, pages = {78 -83}, abstract = {

Morphological correlates of food choice and habitat use in earthworms developed on Lumbricidae and some New Zealand Megascolecidae applied in a general sense to some North American species of the genus Diplocardia (Megascolecidae), but use of the same criteria between taxa is not valid. Intestinal infolding was less extensive in the Diplocardia than in the Lumbricidae, but species of both groups that feed below ground had the greatest development of dorsal infolding of the intestine. The Diplocardia species present in North American prairie included one topsoil-surface feeding species and four species that feed below ground on unrecognizable organic matter, with infrequent root and leaf fragments

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {http://www.jstor.org/stable/2425658}, author = {James, S.W. and Cunningham, M.R.} } @proceedings {KNZ00224, title = {Is fire a disturbance in grasslands?}, year = {1989}, pages = {159 -161}, publisher = {University of Nebraska Press}, address = {Lincoln, NE}, abstract = {

Many grasslands, and in particular the tallgrass prairies of North America, are generally thought to be maintained by periodic fire. Semantic disagreement among researchers, however, threatens to hamper discussion of fire as an ecological force in grassland ecosystems. Some authors emphasize that fires are disturbances (or perturbations) since these fires disrupt or alter ecosystem states, trends and dynamics (e.g., accumulating nitrogen is volatilized, plant and animal communities change in composition). Other researchers point out that, because these fire-induced disruptions and alterations can maintain the status quo of the ecosystem (e.g., prevent it from becoming woodland), it is the lack of fire rather than fire itself that should be considered a disturbance. We argue that, since both points of view are useful, there is little to be gained by labeling loosely either fire or lack thereof as a \"disturbance\" in grassland ecosystems. Key Words: disturbance, fire, grasslands, perturbation, prairie, Kansas

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, fire}, author = {Evans, E.W. and Finck, E.J. and J. M. Briggs and D.J. Gibson and James, S.W. and D.W. Kaufman and Seastedt, T.R.}, editor = {Bragg, T.B. and Stubbendieck, J.} } @article {KNZ00189, title = {Diplocardia hulberti and D. rugosa , new earthworms (Annelida: Oligochaeta : Megascolecidae) from Kansas}, journal = {Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington}, volume = {101}, year = {1988}, pages = {300 -307}, abstract = {

Two species of the megascolecid earthworm genus Diplocardia (subfamily Acanthodrilinae) are described from collections made in tallgrass prairie in north-central Kansas. Diplocardia hulbertri has similarities to D. meansi and some undescribed material in Gates (1977), while D. rugosa appears to be closely related to D. smithii

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ00206, title = {Interactions among soil invertebrates, microbes and plant growth in tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Agriculture, Ecosystems, and Environment}, volume = {24}, year = {1988}, pages = {219 -228}, abstract = {

The tallgrass prairie of North American contains a diverse and abundant soil fauna well represented by earthworms, macro- and microarthopods and nematodes. A portion of this fauna representing a large fraction of the animal biomass has been introduced in the last 200 years, and functional roles and regulatory mechanisms may have been altered because of these introductions. Four years of experimental manipulations of plant and fauna variables have failed to establish a definitive net effect of the soil fauna on primary productivity. However, measurable effects of the fauna on nutrient dynamics of the grassland ecosystem have been observed. Experimental manipulations of plant root dynamics and addition of inorganic nitrogen and fixed carbon have demonstrated that both resources quality and resource quantity are factors limiting the size of soil fauna populations

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.1016/0167-8809(88)90067-9}, author = {Seastedt, T.R. and James, S.W. and Todd, T.C.} } @article {KNZ00188, title = {The postfire environment and earthworm populations in tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Ecology}, volume = {69}, year = {1988}, pages = {476 -483}, abstract = {

Burning of tallgrass prairie is hypothesized to have positive effects on the resource base for belowground-feeding earthworms, but negative effects on the suitability of the soil climate for earthworms. To a certain extent these are inseparable due to the physiology of the grasses that dominate the ecosystem. A four- by-two factorial design using spring burning, autumn burning, addition of natural mulch, and control, with irrigation and without, was used to partially separate the different effects of burning on earthworm populations and to analyze the mechanisms of the responses. The biomass of native prairie earthworms Diplocardia smithii and D. verrucosa increased 135 and 67\%, respectively, with burning; the former species was unaffected by irrigation, and the latter was positively affected. Biomass of an introduced European species Aporrectodea turgida declined from 1.3 g/m2 on unburned plots to 0.85 g/m2 on burned plots and increased with irrigation. These responses reflect increases in the resource base on burned plots, as indicated by an 11\% increase in soil organic matter, and different physiological requirements of the three species. Key words: Aporrectodea, Diplocardia, earthworms, fire, irrigation, soil climate, soil organic matter, tallgrass prairie

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.2307/1940446}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ00116, title = {Nitrogen mineralization by native and introduced earthworms: effects on big bluestem growth}, journal = {Ecology}, volume = {67}, year = {1986}, pages = {1094 -1097}, abstract = {

The presence, in the tallgrass prairie of North America, of an introduced European earthworm, Aporrectodea turgida Eisen (Lumbricidae) and native worms of the genus Diplocardia (Acanthodrilidae) led us to ask how the two groups compare with regard to mineralization of nitrogen and stimulation of plant growth in this ecosystem. Our working hypothesis was that earthworm- caused increases in N mineralization would be detected in leachates from pot cultures and reflected in increased plant growth and N uptake by Andropogon gerardii Vitman, a tallgrass dominant. The magnitude of both of these effects was expected to be greater in pots containing A. turgida, because these worms are larger and appear to be more active. Gut analysis was also performed to assess potential differences in feeding habits of the Diplocardias and A. turgida

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, doi = {10.2307/1939833}, author = {James, S.W. and Seastedt, T.R.} } @article {KNZ0084, title = {An unexpected effect of fall burning on soil organic matter of tallgrass prairie}, journal = {The American Midland Naturalist}, volume = {114}, year = {1985}, pages = {400 -403}, abstract = {

Studies in grasslands have shown that autumn burning, or in the case of tropical areas, burning several months in advance of the rainy season, results in lower postfire productivity than spring burning. Autumn burning in Kansas tallgrass prairie caused greater postfire productivity than spring burning. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that warmer spring soil temperatures stimulate growth of the grasses. Spring and autumn burned plots had similar microclimates. It is possible that different results obtained in similar ecosystems are due to the influence of grazing, properties of different soils and soil decomposer communities, and different prefire nutrient status

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, tallgrass prairie}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ0061, title = {New records of earthworms from Kansas (Oligochaeta: Acanthodrilidae, Lumbricidae, Megascolecide)}, journal = {The Prairie Naturalist}, volume = {16}, year = {1984}, pages = {91 -95}, abstract = {

Several species of earthworms have been previously recorded from the state of Kansas. Here I report the occurrence of nine more species from Douglas, Geary, and Riley counties. They are Diplocardia prosenteris, D. smithi, D. verrucosa, D. sp. A, D. sp. B, Aporrectodea turgida, Octolasion cyaneum, O. tyrtaeum, and Amynthas hupeiensis. Some brief notes on the biology of the worms are presented

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, earthworm}, author = {James, S.W.} } @phdthesis {KNZ0044, title = {Effects of burning on populations of three earthworm species in tallgrass prairie}, volume = {PhD Dissertation}, year = {1983}, pages = {1 -188}, school = {University of Michigan}, type = {Ph.D. Thesis}, address = {Ann Arbor, MI}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, population, tallgrass prairie}, author = {James, S.W.} } @article {KNZ0032, title = {Effects of fire and soil type on earthworm populations in a tallgrass prairie}, journal = {Pedobiologia}, volume = {24}, year = {1982}, pages = {37 -40}, abstract = {

This paper concerns the effect on the earthworms of fire, a vital component of prairie ecology. Prairie has two specific effects: 1) spring burned plots have greater production of grass shoots and roots than unburned plots, and 2) soil temperatures are higher and moisture content lower in spring burned plots than in unburned plots. While increased plant productivity should allow greater earthworm population density, the effect of the harsher soil climate could be adverse

}, keywords = {LTER-KNZ, earthworm, population, prairie, tallgrass}, author = {James, S.W.} }