Ozone Mitigates the Adverse Effects of Diesel Exhaust Pollutants on Ground-Active Invertebrates in Wheat

There is growing evidence to demonstrate that air pollution affecting invertebrates both directly (e.g., causing physiological stress responses) and indirectly via changes in host plant chemistry and/or by disruption of communication volatile odours). Many the studies to-date have focused upon winged insects in-flight foraging. Therefore, this study we investigated how community composition predominantly ground-dwelling fields winter wheat are affected two most ubiquitous lower tropospheric pollutants, diesel exhaust emissions (including nitrogen oxides–NO x ) ozone (O 3 ), individually combination, over 2 years. Pitfall traps, located within rings a Free-Air Diesel Ozone Enrichment (FADOE) facility, were used sample invertebrates. The facility consisted eight 8 m-diameter rings, which allowed elevation pollutants above ambient levels (ca 49–60 ppb NO 35–39 O but currently defined as safe for environment Environmental Protection Agency. collected taxonomically identified characterised diet specialisation, mobility functional group. Taxonomic richness Shannon’s diversity index calculated. Even under relatively low produced, there adverse impacts on invertebrate composition, with greater declines abundance taxonomic treatment compared treatment. In combined treatment, pollutant lower, likely because react one another, consequently lesser negative effect was observed richness. Specialist-feeding species appeared be more sensitive responding negatively treatments than generalist feeders wingless species, respectively. these results suggest severe pollution-mediated decline specialist- generalist-feeding invertebrates, mobile (winged) individuals. Understanding communities respond alone combination will facilitate predictions terrestrial environments anthropogenic emissions, especially shift away from fossil fuel dependence therefore manipulate interactions between common pollutants.