The response of cerambycid beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) to long‐term fire frequency regimes in subtropical eucalypt forest

Abstract

Fire has a varied influence on plant and animal species through direct (e.g. fire-induced mortality) and indirect (e.g. modification of habitat) effects. Our understanding of the influence of fire regime on invertebrates and their response to fire-induced modifications to habitat is poor. We aimed to determine the response of a beetle family (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) to varying fire treatments and hypothesised that the abundance of cerambycid beetles is influenced by fire frequency due to modifications in habitat associated with the fire treatments. Arthropods were sampled across 3 months in annually and triennially burnt areas (treatments starting in 1952 and 1973 respectively), an area unburnt since 1946, and a former unburnt treatment, burnt by wildfire in 2006. Eleven different cerambycid taxa were collected using flight intercept panel traps, dominated by three species (Ipomoria tillides, Adrium sp. and Bethelium signiferum) which made up 99% of individuals collected. Over the sampling period the long unburnt treatment had significantly lower species richness than the triennial and wildfire treatments. Cerambycid abundance was significantly higher in the triennially burnt treatment than in all other fire treatments. Ipomoria tillides was more abundant in both frequently burnt treatments, Adrium sp. was more common in triennially burnt areas, whereas B. signiferum, was more common in the wildfire affected treatment. Some, but not all, cerambycid beetles were more common in areas with a more open understorey (i.e. resulting from frequent burning), and lower tree basal area, as this likely influences their ability to fly easily between food sources. Cerambycid abundance was positively related to the volume of coarse woody debris and healthy tree crowns. Cerambycid beetles were clearly influenced by historic fire regime, suggesting that changes in fire regime can potentially have a profound influence on arthropod assemblages, and subsequent influences on ecosystem processes, which are currently poorly understood.

Planned and unplanned fire regimes on public land in south-east Queensland

“…This is important to know because unplanned fires usually burn at a higher intensity and occur during drier conditions than planned fires, and differences in fire intensity may have significant ecological ramifications, resulting is modifications to an ecosystem (e.g. influencing plant regeneration) (Gosper et al 2013;Chick et al 2018;Eliott et al 2019).…”

Diversity of Cerambycidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) in the Cerrado of Central Brazil using a new type of bait

“…Despite the services that the insects provides, such as pollination, decomposition, and biological control of pests (Ramos et al 2020), cerambycid beetles have been negatively affected by deforestation caused by timber extraction and agricultural activity (IUCN 2019). A study conducted in Australia showed that the Cerambycidae community is influenced by burning regimes, which promote habitat alteration; the study showed that burned areas had a greater richness of beetles than unburned areas, and that the abundance of beetles in areas burned triennially was greater than that in unburned areas (Eliott et al 2019). The Cerrado is a biome closely linked to fire, and if the Cerambycidae community in Central Brazil follows the pattern found in Australia, it should also be affected by this factor.…”

Spatial Distribution Pattern of Longhorn Beetle Assemblages (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) in Mongolian Oak (Quercus Mongolica) Forests in Changbai Mountain, Jilin Province, China

“…Forests are important habitats for longhorn beetles. Forest composition, forest management, forest re, environmental change, and spatial heterogeneity all affect the distribution of longhorn beetle diversity (Toledo et al 2002;Ohsawa 2004;Eliott et al 2019). Stand type, stand age, composition, sectional area, diameter at breast height (DBH), and dead wood affect the richness and abundance of longhorn beetles (Grove 2002 (Luo et al 2021).…”