Biodiversity benefits for saproxylic beetles with uneven-aged silviculture

Hjältén, Joakim; Joelsson, Klara; Gibb, Heloise; Work, Timothy T.; Löfroth, Therese; Roberge, Jean‐Michel

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2017.06.064

Cited by 17 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…This is because forest continuity, a stable microclimate and a stratified forest is maintained. Recent studies from boreal forests support this assumption [ 19 , 24 , 25 ]. Reduced destruction of deadwood during harvesting and post-harvesting processes and continuous deadwood recruitment due to tree senescence in uneven-aged stands provides a more beneficial deadwood regime compared with even-aged silviculture [ 26 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…This means that rapid recolonization becomes less important for species dependent on late decay stages [ 31 , 32 ], but that resources may be much rarer following silviculture, increasing the vulnerability of these species. Previous research from our study system indicated that even-aged forest management has limited impacts on beetle assemblages compared with uneven-aged forest management [ 24 , 25 ]. Here, we test if beetles using deadwood of different decay stages, and thus with different life histories, respond similarly to silvicultural treatments and if stand characteristics influence beetle assemblages.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Forest management strategy affects saproxylic beetle assemblages: A comparison of even and uneven-aged silviculture using direct and indirect sampling

2018

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Management of forest for wood production has altered ecosystem structures and processes and led to habitat loss and species extinctions, worldwide. Deadwood is a key resource supporting forest biodiversity, and commonly declines following forest management. However, different forest management methods affect dead wood differently. For example, uneven-aged silviculture maintains an age-stratified forest with ongoing dead wood production, while even-aged silviculture breaks forest continuity, leading to long periods without large trees. We asked how deadwood-dependent beetles respond to different silvicultural practices and if their responses depend on deadwood volume, and beetles preference for decay stages of deadwood. We compared beetle assemblages in five boreal forest types with different management strategies: clearcutting and thinning (both representing even-aged silviculture), selective felling (representing uneven-aged silviculture), reference and old growth forest (both uneven-aged controls without a recent history [~50 years] of management, but the latter with high conservation values). We collected beetles using window traps and by sieving the bark from experimental logs (bolts). Beetle assemblages on clear-cuts differed from all other stand types, regardless of trapping method or decay stage preference. Thinning differed from reference stands, indicating incomplete recovery after clear-cutting, while selective felling differed only from clear-cuts. In contrast to our predictions, early and late successional species responded similarly to different silvicultural practices. However, there were indications of marginal assemblage differences both between thinned stands and selective felling and between thinned and old growth stands (p = 0.10). The stand volume of early decay stage wood influenced assemblage composition of early, but not late successional species. Uneven-aged silviculture maintained species assemblages similar to those of the reference and old growth stands and might therefore be a better management option when considering biodiversity conservation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest management strategy affects saproxylic beetle assemblages: A comparison of even and uneven-aged silviculture using direct and indirect sampling

2018

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“…These benefits include increased horizontal and vertical structural heterogeneity, improved forest connectivity (Lindenmayer and Franklin 2002), and the more continuous provision of relatively mature trees and coarse woody debris (Atlegrim and Sjöberg 2004). By providing understory microclimate conditions associated with mature tree cover, uneven-aged management tends to favour species associated with later successional forest stages, including species of understory vascular plants, saproxylic beetles and other arthropods (Kuuluvainen et al 2012b;Hjältén et al 2017). Uneven-aged forestry can also be used to increase the multi-functional capacity of production forests (Peura et al 2018).…”

Section: Uneven-aged Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, outcomes depend on thinning regimes (Roberge et al 2016), and important microhabitats can occur in trees older than production goals allow (Ranius et al 2009;Santaniello et al 2017). Whereas longer rotations can also increase timber size, forest carbon storage, and improve water quality, shorter rotation times may instead be used to exploit increased growth rates and reduce disturbance risks (Roberge et al 2016) not only diversify forestry practice (SFA 2017(SFA , 2018b, and aid climate change adaptation (Felton et al 2016a, c), but is also expected to improve the biodiversity and ecosystem services provided (Kuuluvainen et al 2012b;Felton et al 2016c;Hjältén et al 2017;Joelsson et al 2018). Finally, diversified forestry is also likely to increase the food supply for large browsing herbivores in the matrix, which may reduce browsing pressure on damage-sensitive young stands (Bergqvist et al 2018).…”

Section: Longer Rotation Timesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Keeping pace with forestry: Multi-scale conservation in a changing production forest matrix

Felton¹,

Löfroth²,

Angelstam

et al. 2019

Ambio

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The multi-scale approach to conserving forest biodiversity has been used in Sweden since the 1980s, a period defined by increased reserve area and conservation actions within production forests. However, two thousand forest-associated species remain on Sweden's red-list, and Sweden's 2020 goals for sustainable forests are not being met. We argue that ongoing changes in the production forest matrix require more consideration, and that multiscale conservation must be adapted to, and integrated with, production forest development. To make this case, we summarize trends in habitat provision by Sweden's protected and production forests, and the variety of ways silviculture can affect biodiversity. We discuss how different forestry trajectories affect the type and extent of conservation approaches needed to secure biodiversity, and suggest leverage points for aiding the adoption of diversified silviculture. Sweden's long-term experience with multi-scale conservation and intensive forestry provides insights for other countries trying to conserve species within production landscapes.

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“…These changes may be minor after selection felling (Joelsson et al 2018a), but species composition may vary considerably within stands, as felling trails host different composition from the less open, selectively felled fractions (Joelsson et al 2018b). Selection felling in spruce forests, aiming at an uneven age structure of trees, maintains the saproxylic beetle assemblage well, whereas ordinary commercial thinning causes large deviations (Hjältén et al 2017a;Joelsson et al 2017). In these operations, the amount of post-harvest CWD is important (Joelsson 2017).…”

Section: Saproxylic and Other Actively Flying Beetles Short-term Effementioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental evidence on biodiversity impacts of variable retention forestry, prescribed burning, and deadwood manipulation in Fennoscandia

Koivula

Vanha‐Majamaa

2020

Ecol Process

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Intensive forest management has been applied in most Fennoscandian forests for a period of almost one felling rotation. This paradigm has produced even-aged and even-structured forests of different successional stages that cover about 90% of forest land. At the same time, wildfires have been nearly eliminated in most of the Fennoscandian nature. Consequently, hundreds of species are red-listed because of forest management. To support these species, forest management requires improvements. Variable retention forestry and habitat restoration have been suggested to mitigate negative effects of forest management on biodiversity, and these have been practiced to some extent during the past few decades. Here, we review experimental results on the effects of variable retention and two restoration measures (prescribed burning and artificial addition of coarse woody debris) on different species groups in Fennoscandia. Our key findings are as follows: (i) Many species respond positively to felling within a few years, apparently due to released and often ephemeral resources, such as fresh residue and stumps. Species associated with shady conditions are negatively impacted, but any retention supports many of these, and their species composition remains almost unaffected with 50-70% retention of the initial tree volume. (ii) These effects remain detectable for at least 10-30 years or, according to some studies, nearly 100 years, e.g., in polypore fungi. (iii) Initial effects of prescribed burning on most species groups (apart from pyrophiles) are negative, but within 10-15 years post-fire sites begin to support many rare and threatened deadwood-dependent species. Epiphytic lichens, however, remain negatively affected. (iv) Artificial addition of deadwood (mostly high stumps) supports a wide spectrum of deadwood-dependent species, but the species composition differs from that of naturally died trees. (v) Moisture and micro-habitat variation are crucial for forest species at harvested sites, at least in forests dominated by Norway spruce. We conclude that felling method as such is of little importance for threatened forest species, although retention mitigates many negative effects. These species require microclimatic continuity, and maintenance and active increase of legacies, such as deadwood of different qualities (species, downed/standing, snag/log/stump, decay stage), very old trees, and tree species mixtures.

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Biodiversity benefits for saproxylic beetles with uneven-aged silviculture

Cited by 17 publications

References 38 publications

Forest management strategy affects saproxylic beetle assemblages: A comparison of even and uneven-aged silviculture using direct and indirect sampling

Forest management strategy affects saproxylic beetle assemblages: A comparison of even and uneven-aged silviculture using direct and indirect sampling

Keeping pace with forestry: Multi-scale conservation in a changing production forest matrix

Experimental evidence on biodiversity impacts of variable retention forestry, prescribed burning, and deadwood manipulation in Fennoscandia

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