Snakes use microhabitats created by the great capricorn beetle Cerambyx cerdo in southwest Poland

Abstract

Niche engineering is considered one of the most important interspecific interactions that shape ecosystems, but this kind of interaction network has not been sufficiently studied so far. Here we present the first observation of grass snake Natrixnatrix in the galleries of Cerambyxcerdo. We recorded three grass snake individuals basking and hiding inside the C.cerdo galleries. We suggest the presence of this beetle species may create new environmental niches and improve habitat quality for snakes and other vertebrates.

Great capricorn beetle-created corridors as refuges for lizards

“…Our observations show that oak logs with the great capricorn beetle corridors are frequently used by common lizards and subadult sand lizards (this study) as well as grass snakes (Gottfried et al 2019b). It is a clear example that the great capricorn beetle larva corridors seem to be an important microhabitat for small vertebrates.…”

“…These galleries often serve as a refuge for many organisms and thus positively influence local biodiversity. It has already been reported that these microhabitats are used by several other beetle species (Buse et al 2008), small bat species (Regnery 2013b;Gottfried et al 2019a), and young grass snakes Natrix natrix (Gottfried et al 2019b).…”

Body Remains Left by Bird Predators as a Reliable Source for Population Genetic Studies in the Great Capricorn Beetle Cerambyx cerdo, a Veteran Oak Specialist

“…C. cerdo is an important umbrella species that is protected under the EU’s Habitats Directive and threatened in many European countries [ 23 ]. It is also considered as an “ecosystem engineer”, creating the micro-niches both for invertebrates [ 24 ] and vertebrates [ 25 , 26 ]. For adequate protection of the species, it is necessary to better recognise the genetic population parameters as well as dispersal patterns.…”