Ni ShaoXiang;Wang JieChen;Jiang JianJun;Zha Yong

;College of Geographical Science, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210097, China.

aeolian soils;chestnut soils;gley soils;population density;soil types;soil water;soil water content;survival;topsoil

The relationship between rangeland grasshopper density and soil type as well as topsoil moisture content was analysed with in situ soil data collected in the Qinghai Lake region of China. Grasshoppers were confined mainly to the areas with light chestnut soil or chestnut soil, and very few were found in areas with subalpine meadow soil. Grasshoppers were almost absent from other types of soil, such as aeolian soil. In addition, analysis of 14 soil samples collected in the study area revealed that a soil moisture content between 18 and 32 g kg-1 coincided spatially with a higher density of grasshoppers, with the grasshopper density averaging 15 head m-2. In areas with a soil moisture content above 42 g kg-1 or below 10 g kg-1, grasshopper density dropped to less than 5 head m-2. These indicated that for the study area, soils with very high or very low moisture contents were not conducive to the survival of grasshoppers..