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Marie-Madeleine Couteaux; [Reconstitution d'une Nouvelle Communaute Thecamoebienne dans la Litiere d'une Foret incendiee en region Submediterraneenne] (Reconstitution of a new testacean community in forest litter after fire (submediterranean region). Soil Organisms as Components of Ecosystems Ecol.Bull. 25:102-108, 1977
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As a result of a forest fire in a submediterranean region (pine and chestnut), there was total destruction of the forest litter and its testacean fauna. A new litter consisting of pine needles dried by the fire was formed on the ashes. The litter was gradually colonised by Testacea from deeper untouched soil layers. Other annex habitats (mosses, bark) were destroyed by the fire. The process of colonisation was slow and six months after the fire the population density was still small. However, species diversity was high, a sign of a relatively unstructured community with an evolutionary potential because all available space was not utilised. In deeper soil layers the Testacea was preserved because the fire passed rapidly and did not cause a significant rise in temperature. However, the drainage of water containing mineral salts from the ashes modified the habitat and thus the density and structure of the population.