Wildfire yields a distinct turnover of the beetle community in a semi-natural pine forest in northern Sweden ...

• Main Authors: Fredriksson, Emelie, Mugerwa Pettersson, Roger, Naalisvaara, Jörgen, Löfroth, Therese
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: figshare 2020
• Subjects: Ecology; FOS Biological sciences; Fennoscandia; Northern Sweden
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5102183; https://springernature.figshare.com/collections/Wildfire_yields_a_distinct_turnover_of_the_beetle_community_in_a_semi-natural_pine_forest_in_northern_Sweden/5102183

Abstract Background Fires have been an important natural disturbance and pervasive evolutionary force in the boreal biome. Yet, fire suppression has made forest fires rare in the managed landscapes in Fennoscandia, causing significant habitat loss for saproxylic species such as polypores and insects. To better understand how the beetle community changes (species turnover) after a wildfire in a landscape with intense fire suppression, we monitored beetles with flight intercept traps the first 3 years as well as 12 years after a large wildfire in a national park in northern Sweden (a control/unburnt area was set up for the last year of sampling). Results Species composition changed significantly among all studied years with a continuous turnover of species following the wildfire. The indicator species analysis showed that year 1 post-fire was mostly associated with cambium consumers and also the pyrophilous species Batrisodes hubenthali. Year 2 was the most abundant and species-rich year, with Tomicus ...