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Abstract

The Warra Silvicultural Systems Trial (SST) in Tasmania, Australia provides a framework for investigating
the responses of beetles (Order: Coleoptera) to three alternative systems in lowland wet eucalypt forest:
aggregated retention; dispersed retention; and understorey islands retained in clearfelled areas. Beetles
from three families known to be sensitive to forest management, the families Carabidae (groundbeetles),
Curculionidae (weevils) and Leiodidae (fungus-beetles), were collected with pitfall traps prior
to harvest, and in the first and third years post-harvest. The retained aggregates in the aggregated
retention system maintained beetle assemblages reasonably typical of mature forests, at least in these
early years following harvesting. These aggregates appear to provide a stable habitat, with similar
species composition in the first and third years post-harvest. In contrast, the harvested areas of the
aggregated retention system contained low numbers of beetle species affiliated with mature forest, as
did the understorey islands and the dispersed retention system. Relative to clearfelling, all alternative
silvicultural systems appeared to be of some benefit to beetles affiliated with mature forest, but
aggregated retention retained far greater numbers of these beetles compared to the other systems in
Tasmanian wet eucalypt forest.

Item Type:	Article
Authors/Creators:	Baker, SC and Grove, SJ and Forster, LG and Bonham, KJ and Bashford, D
Journal or Publication Title:	Forest Ecology and Management
DOI / ID Number:	10.1016/j.foreco.2009.03.044
Additional Information:	The definitive version is available at http://www.sciencedirect.com
Item Statistics:	View statistics for this item

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