Hidden diversity in forest soils: Characterization and comparison of terrestrial flatworm's communities in two national parks in Spain.

ABSTRACT: Terrestrial flatworms (Platyhelminthes, Tricladida, and Geoplanidae) belong to what is known as cryptic soil fauna of humid forests and are animals not easily found or captured in traps. Nonetheless, they have been demonstrated to be good indicators of the conservation status of their habitat as well as a good model to reconstruct the recent and old events affecting biodiversity. This is mainly due to their delicate constitution, their dependence on the integrity of their habitat, and their very low dispersal capacity. At present, little is known about their communities, except for some studies performed in Brazil. In this work, we analyze for the first time in Europe terrestrial flatworm communities. We have selected two protected areas belonging to the Red Española de Parques Nacional

SUBMITTER: Alvarez-Presas M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6106173 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature