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Litter-dwelling beetles in primeval forests of Central Europe: Does deadwood matter?

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Abstract

We investigated the distribution pattern of litter dwelling beetles in four primeval forests of the Western Carpathians. The forests are situated in two mountain ranges and are either southerly exposed oak forests or northerly exposed beech forests. Beetles were extracted from leaf litter of plots close to coarse woody debris (c-CWD) and distant from coarse woody debris (d-CWD). We collected 2946 individuals of 172 species. Plots close to CWD usually were hot spots of species richness and beetle density, which could be increased two-fold and five-fold, respectively, when compared to d-CWD sites. The influence of CWD within each forest type was stronger than that of any other environmental factor. The c-CWD plots were characterised by both a higher presence of common species and a higher number of rare species. Especially, zoophagous and mycetophagous beetles were enhanced. The assemblage wide carrying capacity at c-CWD sites varied in respect to the gradients of temperature and moisture within a forest. A longer gradient provided a higher carrying capacity. We assume that the influence of downed deadwood on litter dwelling beetles will also be effective in commercial forests and stop the downward spiral with continuing loss of species.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Cologne, Weyertal 119, D-50923, Cologne, Germany

    Werner Topp & Heike Kappes

  2. Institute of Forest Ecology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Sturova 2, SK-96053, Zvolen, Slovak Republic

    Jan Kulfan & Peter Zach

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  1. Werner Topp
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  2. Heike Kappes
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Correspondence to Werner Topp.

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Topp, W., Kappes, H., Kulfan, J. et al. Litter-dwelling beetles in primeval forests of Central Europe: Does deadwood matter?. J Insect Conserv 10, 229–239 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-005-3814-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-005-3814-5

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