Diversity and conservation of saproxylic beetles in 42 European tree species: an experimental approach using early successional stages of branches

Abstract

1. Tree species diversity is important to maintain saproxylic beetle diversity in managed forests. Yet, knowledge about the conservational importance of single tree species and implications for forest management and conservation practices are lacking. 2. We exposed freshly cut branch-bundles of 42 tree species, representing tree species native and non-native to Europe, under sun-exposed and shaded conditions for 1 year. Afterwards, communities of saproxylic beetles were reared ex situ for 2 years. We tested for the impact of tree species and sun exposure on alpha-, beta-, and gamma-diversity as well as composition of saproxylic beetle communities. Furthermore, the number of colonised tree species by each saproxylic beetle species was determined. 3. Tree species had a lower impact on saproxylic beetle communities compared to sun exposure. The diversity of saproxylic beetles varied strongly among tree species, with highest alpha-and gamma-diversity found in Quercus petraea. Red-listed saproxylic beetle species occurred ubiquitously among tree species. We found distinct differences in the community composition of broadleaved and coniferous tree species, native and non-native tree species as well as sun-exposed and shaded deadwood. 4. Our study enhances the understanding of the importance of previously understudied and non-native tree species for the diversity of saproxylic beetles. To improve conservation practices for saproxylic beetles and especially red-listed species, we suggest a stronger incorporation of tree species diversity and sun exposure of into forest management strategies, including the enrichment of deadwood from native and with a specific focus on locally rare or silviculturally less important tree species.

The Pitfalls in the Path of Probabilistic Inference in Forensic Entomology: A Review

“…For examples of multivariate regression trees, see studies on saproxylic beetles such as [ 48 , 49 ]. For examples of discriminant analysis, see studies on saproxylic beetles such as [ 50 ] or on dung beetles such as [ 51 ]. For examples of MANOVAs in a forensic context, see [ 33 , 40 , 52 , 53 ].…”

Diversity and conservation of saproxylic beetles in 42 European tree species: an experimental approach using early successional stages of branches

“…In the original version of the article by Vogel et al . (2021), the non‐native Prunus serotina was incorrectly interchanged with the native Prunus padus , and eight individuals of saproxylic beetles were incorrectly removed from the data when splitting beetles in saproxylic and non‐saproxylic species. The correct tree species is Prunus serotina , and results refer to a total of 113 species of saproxylic beetles and 30,550 individuals.…”

Co-occurrence variation explains the low host dependence of ambrosia beetles along altitude gradients in SW China

“…It is hypothesized that the distributional range of a hosted insect is largely determined by the ecological amplitudes of tree species with which they interact, if clear host speci city is observed. That is, scarcity of suitable interacting partners can restrict the potential niche of a hosted insect species [1,2]. This intrinsically dependent relationship has been used to estimate the global insect diversity through comparisons of trees or tree phylogeny diversity among different regions [3][4][5][6][7].…”

“…In this context, recent research has mostly focused on plant-herbivore [12,13,30,36] and -pollinator interactions [37], relationships that are all specialized to some extent. Exceptions are Hulcr et al [38], Hulcr et al [1], Wu et al [39], Wende et al [40], and Vogel et al [2], who studied ambrosia and saproxylic beetles, which are loosely associated with their hosts. Their studies investigated the impact of host speci city on beetle community composition within the same climatic region, disregarding environment gradients.…”

“…Exploitation of the fungi as food source has allowed ambrosia beetles to use a wide variety of hosts [38,43]. The effects of tree diversity, host speci city, and structural heterogeneity of habitat on ambrosia beetles at a local scale and along a at environmental gradient have been well studied [1,2,38,[43][44][45]. However, a regional cross-taxon comparison of how β-diversity of ambrosia beetle communities is related to that of their host species along a steep environmental gradient has not, to our knowledge, been reported.…”