TY - JOUR A1 - Wanner, Manfred A1 - Elmer, Michael A1 - Sommer, Michael A1 - Funk, Roger A1 - Puppe, Daniel T1 - Testate amoebae colonizing a newly exposed land surface are of airborne origin JF - Ecological indicators : integrating monitoring, assessment and management N2 - We hypothesized that at the very beginning of terrestrial ecosystem development, airborne testate amoebae play a pivotal role in facilitating organismic colonization and related soil processes. We, therefore, analyzed size and quantity of airborne testate amoebae and immigration and colonization success of airborne testate amoebae on a new land surface (experimental site "Chicken Creek", artificial post-mining water catchment). Within an altogether 91-day exposure of 70 adhesive traps, 12 species of testate amoebae were identified to be of airborne origin. Phryganella acropodia (51% of all individuals found, diameter about 35-45 mu m) and Centropyxis sphagnicola (23% of all individuals found, longest axis about 55-68 mu m), occurred most frequently in the adhesive traps. We extrapolated an aerial amoeba deposition of 61 individuals d(-1) m(-2) (living and dead individuals combined). Although it would be necessary to have a longer sequence (some additional years), our analysis of the "target substrate" of aerial immigration (catchment site) may point to a shift from a stochastic (variable) beginning of community assembly to a more deterministic (stable) course. This shift was assigned to an age of seven years of initial soil development. Although experienced specialists are necessary to conduct these time-consuming studies, the presented data suggest that terrestrial amoebae are suitable indicators for initial ecosystem development and utilization. KW - Artificial water catchment KW - Immigration by air KW - Biological indicator Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.07.037 SN - 1470-160X SN - 1872-7034 VL - 48 SP - 55 EP - 62 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER -