Monday, December 10, 2007
D0035

Fine beetles: The community structure of Coleoptera in twigs and the efficacy of using twig bundles as a collecting technique

Michael L. Ferro, spongymesophyll@gmail.com1, Matthew L. Gimmel, mgimme1@lsu.edu2, and Christopher E. Carlton, ccarlt@lsu.edu1. (1) Louisiana State University, 402 Life Sciences Building, Baton Rouge, LA, (2) Louisiana State University, Department of Entomology, 402 Life Sciences Building, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA

Twigs represent an abundant source of fine woody debris and have been well studied in regards to economically important beetle species such as the scolytine curculionids (bark beetles) but, typically non-economically important species are ignored. A simple study exploring 1) the efficacy of rearing Coleoptera from fine woody debris and 2) the effect of debris position was conducted. A single Quercus falcata Michx. (Southern Red Oak) was felled March 2006. Twigs ~36cm in length and ~14mm diameter were randomly placed into bundles of ten. At each of three sites three bundles were placed directly on the ground, three propped against a standing tree, and three tied approximately 1m above the ground tight against the branch of a living woody plant. The 27 bundles were collected ~10 months later during January 2007, and each was placed into a rearing chamber with a thin film of propylene glycol in the bottom as a preservative. Specimens were collected ~6 months later during July 2007. More than 400 adult Coleoptera specimens were collected representing 33 species within 16 families. Cerambycidae (longhorn beetles) and Curculionidae (weevils) exhibited the highest richness, with 9 and 5 species respectively. Comparisons of communities among the bundle positions are discussed.


Species 1: Coleoptera Cerambycidae
Species 2: Coleoptera Curculionidae