Rapid Changes in Soil Nematodes in the First Years after Technosol Construction for the Remediation of an Industrial Wasteland

Technosol construction is an emergent technology that uses an assemblage of technogenic materials for the ecological reclamation of derelict land and waste recycling. Knowledge about the colonisation of Technosols by soil biota is limited, despite the latter’s central role in ecosystem functioning. In this four-year field (2008 to 2011) study, we characterized the development over time of the diversity and the abundance of soil nematodes in two types of Technosols in North-Eastern France. We also studied the nematode community structure, abundance of taxa and functional groups in both Technosol profiles in the third year of the study. Samples were collected from the top soil layer (0–20 cm) each year in the spring (April), on a one ha. field experiment that had spatially divided in 24 sampling areas. For soil profiles, three samples were collected in three horizons within six pits (three pits per Technosol). Nematodes were extracted from soil and identified at the family or genus level and then classified into functional feeding guilds. In the first year, the community was dominated by opportunistic bacterial feeders. The taxonomic and functional nematode diversity increased with time, with a dominance of non-opportunistic bacterial feeders after four years, but also the significant presence of fungal feeders, omnivorous and carnivorous, as well as plant parasites and insect parasites. No significant difference was observed between the two Technosols. Each layer showed distinct communities, with nematode diversity and abundance decreasing with depth. Abundance and diversity, coupled with the analysis of several indexes, commonly used for nematodes, including Maturity index (MI), Enrichment index (EI), Structure index (SI) and Nematode channel ratio (NCR), lead to the conclusion that the high organic matter content, particularly in the upper horizon of both Technosols, guaranteed nematode colonization and progressive diversification, and is likely to be the key for successful biodiversity reclamation.