Spider biodiversity and density following cultivation in pastures in the Waikato, New Zealand

The effect of cultivation on spider density and diversity was assessed at three sites before and after cultivation in autumn. Linyphiid spiders dominated the fauna at each site (60–90% of the spiders present) with Eperigone fradeorum (Berland) the most common spider (38% of the spiders collected). At all three sites, the populations of both linyphiid and non‐linyphiid spiders decreased significantly after fields were cultivated. Population declines after cultivation did not appear to be related to the intensity of cultivation. This suggests that environmental factors were not an important influence on spider populations, at least in the early part of the experiment. Grazing had a detrimental effect on spider density and diversity. These results suggest that both cultivation and ongoing management can affect spider density and diversity.