Ecological impact of lindane on a pine plantation soil microarthropod community

The ecological impact of lindane, a widely used pesticide, on microarthropods in pine forest soil was studied. Trees in control plots were sprayed with a 1% lindane emulsion one liter of emulsion per square meter of bark. Microarthropod species considreed included collembola, ascidae, zeroconidae, and cryptostigmatid mites. Lindane application resulted in lindane concentrations of 23-25 ppm in the upper 76 mm of the soil near the base of the trees. Lindane was shown to reduce the heterogeneity and to change the community structure of collembola and cryptomastigmatid mites three days after treatment. Ascidae and zeroconidae were unaffected by lindane treatment. The possibility that annual applications of lindane could have a cumulative effect on microarthropod communities must be investigated.