Invertebrates are dominant species in primary tropical rainforests, where their abundance and diversity contributes to the functioning and resilience of these globally important ecosystems. However, more than one-third of tropical forests have been logged, with dramatic impacts on rainforest biodiversity that may disrupt key ecosystem processes. the contribution of invertebrates to three ecosystem processes operating at three trophic levels (litter decomposition, seed predation and removal, and invertebrate predation) is reduced by up to one-half following logging.
These changes are associated with decreased abundance of key functional groups of termites, ants, beetles and earthworms, and an increase in the abundance of small mammals, amphibians and insectivorous birds in logged relative to primary forest. results suggest that ecosystem processes themselves have considerable resilience to logging, but the consistent decline of invertebrate functional importance is indicative of a human-induced shift in how these ecological processes operate in tropical rainforest.
Diversity of Soil Fauna and Ecosystem Function :http://www.colby.edu/biology/BI131/Lab/Lavelle%201996.pdf
The Tropical Rain Forest:http://www.globalchange.umich.edu/globalchange1/current/lectures/kling/rainforest/rainforest.html
SPECIAL FEATURES OF INVERTEBRATES include:1 Invertebrates are small and can utilise very small resource items. A large number of species can share the same habitat, some of which may have very large populations. 2 Most species have annual life cycles and depend on suitable breeding conditions being present every year at the appropriate time. For species with more than one generation a year these requirements are repeated through the year. Fewer species have generations longer than one year, even fewer both long and short.3 Invertebrates in general have no long term resting stage so they cannot easily overcome even short periods of adversity. 4 Invertebrates have complex life cycles and each part of the life cycle has specific habitat requirements that must be met within the limits of mobility for the life stage of the species. 5 Most invertebrates have very limited means of dispersal and are therefore very slow at recolonisation of sites from where they have been lost. 6 Invertebrates are cold blooded and therefore dependent on external heat for normal activity. Therefore, warm surfaces such as bare ground, rock faces and tree trunks are important for their survival. The main functional groups present are: pollinators; biological control agents; soil ecosystem engineers and regulators; food providers and providers of non-timber forest goods. Aquatic invertebrates that positively contribute to the fisheries and aquaculture sectors are not considered in this document. Enclosed below are some useful PDFs for further reading . .Hope , you will like them all..
The functional role of invertebrates in tropical forest soil they are the following: a) are dominant prey; b) predators of seeds and other invertebrates, c) herbivores and pollinators in forest ecosystems; and d) are among the most important organisms for breaking down dead organic matter.
They are called ecosystem engineers by Lavelle et al (1997). l suggest reviewing this work