Abstract
Specimens of Onychiurus procampatus (Collembola) observed grazing on fungal mycelia were collected from the surface soil of three differently manged upland grasslands. A general trend of an increasing proportion of Collembola with a full gut was found along a gradient of reduced sheep management intensity, which was correlated with increased fungal biomass. In the laboratory, this collembolan showed a consistent order of preference for the mycelium of seven common fungal species isolated from the field sites.
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Bardgett, R.D., Whittaker, J.B. & Frankland, J.C. The diet and food preferences of Onychiurus procampatus (Collembola) from upland grassland soils. Biol Fert Soils 16, 296–298 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00369308
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00369308