Soil microbial community fragmentation reveals indirect effects of pesticide application mediated through biotic interactions between taxa

In soil ecosystems, microorganisms exist in complex and diverse communities where microbial taxa are linked through different types of interactions. Therefore, pesticide application will not only directly affect certain microbial taxa, but will also have indirect effects throughout the community mediated through these interactions. These indirect effects may also influence ecosystem functions. In this study, a naturally occurring soil microbial community was fragmented by filtering a soil suspension and inoculating sterile soil microcosms. The effect of the fungicide Hymexazol on community structure and function was tested on the separate fractions and on the unfragmented community after a …