| abstract | The side effects of two insecticides used for controlling outbreaks of the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar L., on soil fauna were studied in a field experiment in the Hardtwald near Bruchsal (Upper Rhine Valley). The predtory mite community was characteristic for forests, nevertheless it showed some peculiarities like the high abundance of small Pergamasus species and the occurence of the mediterranean species Ameroseius cavernosus. There are also characteristic traits in community organisation which could be explained by the structure of the organic layer in this forest which is between a mull and a moder profile. At the sites that have been treated with Dimilin there was a slight decrease of predatory mite abundance and within the community a shift towards colonizing species. |