Linking taxonomical and functional biodiversity of saproxylic fungi and beetles in broad‐leaved forests in southern Italy with varying management histories

Abstract

The fundamental ecological significance of deadwood decomposition in forests has been highlighted in several reviews, some conclusions regarding silviculture being drawn. Old-growth forests are natural centres of biodiversity. Saproxylic fungi and beetles, which are vital components of these ecosystems, occupy a variety of spatial and trophic niches. Fungal and beetle diversity on coarse woody debris (CWD) was analysed in 36 forest sites in the Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park, Italy. The data were analysed by DCA and Spearman's rank correlation. The results provide empirical evidence of the existence of a pattern of joint colonization of the woody substrate by fungi and beetles, which includes an assemblage of reciprocal trophic roles within fungal/beetle communities. These organisms act together to form a dynamic taxonomical and functional ecosystem component within the complex set of processes involved in wood decay. The variables most predictive of correlations between management-related structural attributes and fungal/beetle species richness and their trophic roles for old-growth forest are: number of logs, number of decay classes and CWD total volume. Deadwood spatiotemporal continuity should be the main objective of forest planning to stop the loss of saproxylic fungal and insect biodiversity.

Arthropod Diversity and Functional Importance in Old-Growth Forests of North America

“…Globally, this group (with the exception of ambrosia beetles) has become much less abundant (and many species are threatened or endangered) in fragmented or younger, managed forests where dead wood is less abundant, smaller in diameter, or removed as harvestable biomass, compared to abundancesin old-growth forests [21,22,46,47]. Many wood-boring insects, such as wood wasps (Siricidae) and some beetles (especially Buprestidae), also may be abundant in younger forests with coarse woody debris remaining after storms or fires [44].…”

Effect of deadwood of different tree species in various stages of decomposition on biochemical soil properties and carbon storage

“…Deadwood serves as a habitat and resource for many insects and microbes (Davies et al 2008;Persiani et al 2010;Cocciufa et al 2014), and it is a seedbed for plants (Narukawa et al 2003;Bacˇe et al 2012). Soil enzymes produced by microbes play a key role in the biochemical process of organic matter decomposition (Kotroczoé t al.…”

New Italian records of Lichenophanes varius (Illiger, 1801) (Coleoptera, Bostrichidae)

“…Biscogniauxia nummularia occurs in the above site of Campania (cf. Persiani et al 2010) and, in this place, L. varius was reared from branches of Q. cerris colonized by Biscogniauxia sp. (Nardi and Biscaccianti this paper).…”

“…This peculiar larval ecology, as observed for other saproxylophagous beetles (cf. Rejzek and Vlásak 2000, Persiani et al 2010, Borowski and Pietka 2014, is, probably, one of the causes of the rarity of this Bostrichid.…”

“…The former were obtained after examination of museum collections where large number of saproxylic beetles collected during recent forest monitoring programmes were present (Audisio and Biscaccianti 2008, Persiani et al 2010, Della Rocca et al 2014, Di Santo and Biscaccianti 2014, Hardersen et al 2014, Parisi 2014, Redolfi De Zan et al 2014, Faccoli and Montecchio 2015, Macagno et al 2015, Nardi et al 2015a, Biscaccianti et al 2016, Matteucci 2016.…”