Abstract:
With the increasing awareness of ecological conservation and the rising demand for safe food, the development of ecological farms has gained momentum, with the preservation of ecological land emerging as a critical component in their establishment. Arthropods play a pivotal role in maintaining agricultural ecosystem stability and promoting sustainable food production. Thus, understanding and evaluating arthropod diversity and its influencing factors across different ecological land types in ecological farms are essential for guiding farm construction and ensuring green production practices. This study investigated ground-dwelling arthropod diversity and herbaceous vegetation across six ecological land types—wetland, grassland, orchard, forest, hedgerow, and bamboo grove — at Yuefeng Island Organic Farm in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. We analyzed arthropod diversity patterns among land types and explored the effects of ecological land type and herbaceous vegetation diversity on arthropod communities. Key findings included: 1) Significant differences in arthropod diversity were observed across ecological land types. Grassland, hedgerow, and wetland harbored similar arthropod community compositions, while forest, bamboo grove, and orchard formed another distinct cluster. Although species richness and abundance of arthropods did not differ significantly among land types, the orchard exhibited the highest Shannon index, which was significantly greater than that of grassland; no differences were found among other types. 2) Neutral arthropods dominated arthropod communities in all land types, comprising the largest proportional group. Pest and natural enemy arthropods showed no significant differences in species richness across land types, but their abundances and Shannon indices varied significantly. For neutral arthropods, species richness and Shannon indices were similar among land types, yet abundances differed significantly. Notably, the natural enemy-to-pest ratio exceeded 1 in wetland, forest, and hedgerow habitats. 3) Herbaceous vegetation traits—species richness, coverage, and Shannon index—were negatively correlated with pest arthropod abundance but positively correlated with pest arthropod Shannon diversity. No significant correlations were detected between total arthropods, natural enemies, neutral arthropods, and vegetation diversity. The study highlights that maintaining diverse vegetated ecological lands can effectively enhance arthropod biodiversity in ecological farm areas, though their roles in sustaining total and functional arthropod groups differ: orchards excel in supporting overall biodiversity, while hedgerows are most effective for pest regulation. Increasing herbaceous layer diversity can provide more suitable habitats for arthropods and mitigate pest outbreaks, underscoring the importance of vegetation management in ecological farm design.