Threatened Beetles in White‐Backed Woodpecker Habitats

• Published in: Conservation Biology
• Main Authors: Martikainen, Petri, Kaila, Lauri, Haila, Yrjö
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 1998
• Subjects: karelia*
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1523-1739.1998.96484.x; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1523-1739.1998.96484.x; http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/wol1/doi/10.1111/j.1523-1739.1998.96484.x/fullpdf

We explored the importance of habitats preferred by the endangered White‐backed Woodpecker (Dendrocopos leucotos) for threatened, saproxylic beetles (Coleoptera). We sampled 16 potential breeding forests of the White‐backed Woodpecker in Finland and Russian Karelia. Our surveys yielded 16 threatened species from a total of 39,485 identified beetle individuals. All 16 species and the woodpecker are dependent on the same resource, decaying wood, and at least some of the beetles even prefer successional deciduous habitats, as does the woodpecker. Based on 6 years of data, we conclude that the number of threatened beetle species in each of these forests is considerable (6 or more), although samples from one season included only 0–4 such species. These inconspicuous threatened species might be protected through use of the White‐backed Woodpecker as an umbrella species to define suitable habitats. The woodpeckers require approximately 50–100 ha of suitable habitat for breeding, suggesting that every woodpecker territory may include local populations of a number of threatened beetle species. If the White‐backed Woodpecker can be saved in Finland, a suite of threatened saproxylic beetles will most likely be saved as well. We also need more information on the minimum requirements of the threatened beetles, which can be obtained only by continued study of the beetles themselves. Escarabajos Amenazados en Hábitats del Pájaro Carpintro de Espalda Blanca Exploramos la importancia de los hábitats preferidos por el pájaro carpintero de espalda blanca, en peligro de extinción (Dendrocopos leucotos) para los escarabajos saproxilicos (Coleoptera) amenazados. Muestreamos 16 bosques con potencial para la reproducción del pájaro carpintero en Finlandia y la Karelia Rusa. Nuestros muestreos arrojaron 16 especies amenazadas de un total de 39,485 individous de coleopteros identificados. Las 16 especies y el pájaro carpintero dependen del mismo recurso, madera en descomposición y al menos algunos de los escarabajos prefieren hábitats ...