EFEITO DE BORDA NA ENTOMOFAUNA EDÁFICA EM REMANESCNTES DE CERRADO (MATO GROSSO DO SUL)

Abstract

Habitat fragmentation reduces the extent of native areas and creates contact between natural environments and different land-use matrices, leading to impacts such as the edge effect. Soil entomofauna is closely linked to ecological processes in the soil and responds clearly to environmental changes, showing great potential as an indicator of environmental quality. This study aimed to evaluate the edge effect on the abundance of soil entomofauna in three Cerrado remnants surrounded by eucalyptus plantations in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul and to identify potential indicator groups of environmental impacts. Sampling was conducted from February to April 2024, using pitfall traps. The traps were installed along two 1,400-meter transects: one parallel to the edge and another longitudinally positioned 500 meters from the remnant's edge. In each transect, 14 traps were set 100 meters apart. At each trap site, air temperature, relative humidity, and light intensity were measured. After seven days, the traps were removed, and the insects collected were sorted, identified to the taxonomic level of Order, and quantified. A general pattern of decreasing temperature and light intensity was observed with increasing distance from the edge, along with higher relative humidity. A total of 29,648 insects were collected, representing 13 orders, with Collembola, Hymenoptera, and Coleoptera being the most representative. The edge effect influenced the abundance of soil entomofauna, with a decrease in total abundance along the edge-interior gradient and variations in the abundance of different insect orders. The orders Collembola, Coleoptera, Dermaptera, Hymenoptera, Isoptera, and Blattodea were identified as potential bioindicators of the edge effect. In summary, the results demonstrated that fragmentation and the edge effect altered the environmental conditions of ecosystems and directly impacted soil entomofauna, emphasizing the importance of studies that use soil entomofauna for environmental monitoring and the conservation of fragmented ecosystems.