The introduction of invasive earthworm species affects the nutrient cycle in the soil. Therefore, the effect of the native earthworm Eisenia nordenskioldi pallida, the invasive Aporrectodea caliginosa, and their combined presence on the availability of the water-soluble cations NH₄^ +, K+, Na+, Mg2+, and Ca2+ was studied. To achieve this, a field mesocosm experiment was conducted, and the cation content was measured by capillary electrophoresis. The experiment revealed that the invasive species only relatively weakly altered cation availability within a single growing season. The impact of A. caliginosa invasion depended on whether the soil was already inhabited by the native species or not. The effect of E. n. pallida on cation availability was studied for the first time.
Babiy et al. (Mon,) studied this question.