Meeting Abstract

P3.125  Monday, Jan. 6 15:30  Effects of Hiking Trails on Soil Invertebrate Abundance, Taxonomic Richness, and Biodiversity HUANG, X.*; CHOW, M.H.; MANCIA, S.I.; MCMILLAN, B.; JACOBS, M.W.; McDaniel College; McDaniel College; McDaniel College; Bryn Mawr School; McDaniel College xh001@connections.mcdaniel.edu

Hiking trails are often described as low-impact, but may significantly change the physical characteristics of soil habitats. Soil in and around hiking trails is more compacted, dryer, and has lower vegetative cover than surrounding soil, which may significantly impact communities of soil-dwelling organisms. We analyzed the effects of hiking trails on soil invertebrate abundance, taxonomic richness, and biodiversity by (1) comparing soil communities in the path to adjacent off-path communities, and (2) testing whether the presence of a path affected spatial change in soil community along a gradient away from a stream. We found that hiking paths strongly impacted soil invertebrate communities: invertebrate abundance, taxonomic richness, and biodiversity were significantly lower at path locations compared to adjacent off-path locations. This suggests that soil compaction in trails reduces habitat suitability for soil invertebrates. Although our results do not support the hypothesis that the hiking path acted as a barrier to the migration of soil invertebrates, we cannot reject the hypothesis because we also did not find evidence of any community gradient away from the stream. More research is needed to determine whether hiking paths act as barriers to the movement of soil invertebrates along environmental gradients.