Ecological patterns of micro land snails along the altitudinal gradients of mount makiling, Philippines

Abstract

© 2018, International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences. All rights reserved. Studies on the diversity and ecology of micro land snails (< 5 mm) are very limited in the Philippines. To address this information gap, the diversity and community composition of micro land snails were determined along the northeastern slope of Mount Makiling, Luzon Island, Philippines. The area was divided into seven elevation gradients, wherein five quadrats (25 m2) were randomly set. From a total of 103 individuals sampled, 10 micro land snail species were identified belonging to four families (Ariophantidae, Diplommatinidae, Helicarionidae, and Subulinidae). The most abundant species was Kaliella sp. (21) while Lamellaxis clavicum (4) was the least. The UPLB Forestry Site 2 had the highest number of individuals (60), species richness (9) and diversity index (H’ = 2.0). Among the study sites, UPLB Forestry Site (UFS) 7 was the least in species richness (1) and diversity (H’= 0.00), while UFS 4 had the least number of individuals (2). Species accumulation curve revealed efficient sampling (completeness ratio = 0.95) and diversity pattern. Canonical correspondence analysis revealed the total distribution of the environmental variables with micro land snails. Among the environmental variables, soil pH and calcium were identified as significant limiting factors affecting the community assemblage of micro land snails. Using generalized linear mixed modelling, soil pH was discriminated as the main predictor for abundance while leaf litter depth for species richness. This study demonstrated that soil calcium and pH were the limiting factors for micro land snail diversity and abundance in the northeastern slope of Mt. Makiling.

Source or Periodical Title

Journal of the International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences

ISSN

8593132

Page

30-42

Document Type

Article

Subject

Diversity, Ecology, Micro land snails, Mount makiling, Species richness

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