Suitability of seven species of soil-inhabiting invertebrates for testing toxicity of pesticides in soil pore water

The importance of the soil liquid phase (or pore water) for assessment of hazard and risk of contaminants to soil organisms has recently been recognized by several researchers. A particular concentration of contaminant in the pore water of different soils has been shown to produce similar toxicological effects. A particular content of contaminant in the soil as a whole, however, exhibits a range of toxicity in different soils. These insights raised the need for tests in which soil organisms are exposed to chemicals in natural or surrogate pore water. The present study assessed the suitability of seven species of soil invertebrate for carrying out toxicological tests for pesticides in water. Requirements were that the organisms had to survive in water, be easy to handle, be easy to bread, be sensitive to pesticides, and show unambiguous toxicological effects. The organisms tested were the nematodes Plectus parietinus and Globodera rostochiensis, the white potworms Enchytraeus buchholzi and Euchytraeus albidus, the manure worm Eisenia fetida, the mite Caloglyphus mycophagus and the springtail Folsomia candida. The springtail Folsomia candida met all the requirements and proved to be the most suitable of the organisms tested for soil quality assessment using soil pore water.