Responses of two Sericoda Kirby, 1837 (Coleoptera: Carabidae) species to forest harvesting, wildfire, and burn severity

Koivula, M., Cobb, T., Dechene, A. D., Jacobs, J. & Spence, J. R. 2006: Responses of two Sericoda Kirby, 1837 (Coleoptera: Carabidae) species to forest harvesting, wildfire, and burn severity. — Entomol. Fennica 17: 315–324. Forest fires are among the most important natural disturbances in the boreal region, but fire-initiated succession is increasingly often interrupted by salvage logging, i.e., post-fire removal of burned trees. Unfortunately, very little is known about the ecological effects of this practice. To address this knowledge gap and to examine other factors affecting the abundance of two fire-associated carabid species (Sericoda quadripuntata and S. bembidioides) we conducted three field studies based on pitfall trapping in recent burns in Alberta, Canada. Theresultssuggestthattheabundanceofbothspeciesdrasticallydecreasedfrom the first to the third post-fire year and that fire severity was positively associated with abundance of both species. The combined effects of wildfire and forest harvesting were associated with higher catches of S. quadripunctata, but lower catches of S. bembidioides. We discuss these findings in the contexts of salvage logging and species ecology.