Does dead wood volume affect saproxylic beetles in montane beech-fir forests of Central Europe?

• Published in: Journal of insect conservation Vol. 23; no. 1; pp. 157 - 173
• Main Authors: Procházka, Jiří, Schlaghamerský, Jiří
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.02.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abundance; Animal Ecology; Beech; Beetles; Biodiversity; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Coleoptera; Conservation Biology/Ecology; Dead wood; Decay; Disintegration; Endangered & extinct species; Entomology; Forest management; Forests; Interception; Life Sciences; Original Paper; Species richness; Threatened species; Traps; Wildlife conservation; Wood; Central Europe; Flight interception traps; Red list; Saproxylic beetles; Decaying wood; Stand structure
• ISSN: 1366-638X; 1572-9753
• DOI: 10.1007/s10841-019-00130-4

As most European forests are commercially managed for wood production, excluding the disintegration phase of the forest development cycle, a serious decline of numerous species has been observed. The intensity of forest management is critical for biodiversity conservation, especially in regard to saproxylic organisms, as it reduces the abundance of old trees and dead wood. We studied saproxylic beetles in 12 montane beech-fir stands in a Central European mountain range. We used 72 flight interception traps exposed for two vegetation seasons (2012 and 2013) placed at sites characterized by three levels of dead wood volume. In total, 7990 individuals of 287 species belonging to 41 families were collected. Species richness and abundance of both non-threatened and threatened species showed no significant differences among the three studied forest stand categories. Nevertheless, the presence of both non-threatened and threatened species in the studied forest stands was affected by several environmental variables. Large diameter dead wood, dead wood in the last decay stage and dead beech wood close to the traps significantly affected the assemblage of threatened beetles. Canopy openness, thin dead wood in the wider trap surroundings and dead wood in the second and third decay stage in the closer trap surroundings affected the assemblage of non-threatened species.