The distribution of soil ciliates in three different habitats within a typical mangrove forest in Dongzhaigang, Hainan, China was investigated. The abundance, biodiversity, and community similarity of ciliates in fresh and air-dried soil with different, physical/chemical properties were analyzed. Three Classes, 11 Orders, 34 Genera, and 70 species of ciliates were found with the first dominant group being Hypotrichida. Ciliate biodiversities followed Site B < Site A < Site C in both fresh and dried samples. Ciliate abundance was positively correlated with soil moisture, salinity, organic matter (OM), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and sulfate ( ), but negatively with pH and total potassium (TK). Site A and Site B and Site B and Site C showed the highest similarity in fresh and dried samples, respectively. The ubiquitous characteristics of ciliate distribution suggested their important role in food webs and nutrient cycling. The presence of Colpodida was linked with mangrove plants. 1. Introduction Mangrove ecosystems are typical wetland systems in coastal deposits of mud and silt throughout the tropics and subtropical latitudes. They play an important role in maintaining and improving biological environments, purifying air, and resisting wastewater pollution and natural disasters in bays or estuary areas. They are treated as “maritime forests” for their special ecological, economical, and tourist values [1]. The importance of mangroves has attracted increasing attention in recent years, especially after the recent huge tsunami in Indian Ocean [2]. More and more research has been conducted on mangrove ecosystems. Although all major groups of mangrove plants and animals have been studied to some extent [3–7], little information is available on single-celled soil protozoan organisms except a few described species of foraminifera, amoeboid, and ciliated protists [8–11]. Investigations on soil ciliates in mangrove forest habitats are rare. Being an important group in nutrient cycling, energy flow, and food webs [12, 13], soil ciliates have participated in the decomposition of benthic residual deposit and the formation and development of mangrove soil and accelerated the mineralization processes of carbon, nitrogen, and other mineral nutrient elements [14]. As the main bacterial consumers, soil ciliates also have special characteristics such as high respiration, short generation times, and rapid multiplication. In the rhizosphere of living plants, protozoa play an important role in the mineralization of mineral nutrient elements. The pot
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