(Syrphidae) Communities Respond to Varying Structural Retention After Harvesting in Canadian Peatland Black Spruce Forests Author(S): A
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Hoverfly (Syrphidae) Communities Respond to Varying Structural Retention After Harvesting in Canadian Peatland Black Spruce Forests Author(s): A. M. Deans, S. M. Smith, J. R. Malcolm, W. J. Crins, and M. I. Bellocq Source: Environmental Entomology, 36(2):308-318. Published By: Entomological Society of America DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1603/0046-225X(2007)36[308:HSCRTV]2.0.CO;2 URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1603/0046-225X %282007%2936%5B308%3AHSCRTV%5D2.0.CO%3B2 BioOne (www.bioone.org) is a nonprofit, online aggregation of core research in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences. BioOne provides a sustainable online platform for over 170 journals and books published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses. Your use of this PDF, the BioOne Web site, and all posted and associated content indicates your acceptance of BioOne’s Terms of Use, available at www.bioone.org/page/ terms_of_use. Usage of BioOne content is strictly limited to personal, educational, and non-commercial use. Commercial inquiries or rights and permissions requests should be directed to the individual publisher as copyright holder. BioOne sees sustainable scholarly publishing as an inherently collaborative enterprise connecting authors, nonprofit publishers, academic institutions, research libraries, and research funders in the common goal of maximizing access to critical research. COMMUNITY AND ECOSYSTEM ECOLOGY Hoverfly (Syrphidae) Communities Respond to Varying Structural Retention After Harvesting in Canadian Peatland Black Spruce Forests 1 1,2 1 3 4 A. M. DEANS, S. M. SMITH, J. R. MALCOLM, W. J. CRINS, AND M. I. BELLOCQ Environ. Entomol. 36(2): 308Ð318 (2007) ABSTRACT Variable retention harvesting (VRH), in which trees are removed at variable intensity and spatial conÞguration across the landscape, retains greater forest structural heterogeneity than traditional clear-cut harvesting and is being recommended as an alternative for sustainable manage- ment of the boreal forest. Little is known about its effects on forest fauna; thus, we studied the inßuence of one type of VRH (harvesting with advanced regeneration [HARP]) on the Syrphidae (Diptera) community in northern Ontario forests of peatland black spruce (Picea mariana). We examined the effects of varying structural retention (from unharvested through partial retention to clear-cut) on syrphid species richness and abundance, and abundance of functional assemblages. Greater species richness and population abundances were found generally in harvested than in unharvested forests. Overall species richness and the abundance of four species (Platycheirus rosarum, Toxomerus mar- ginatus, Xylota annulifera, and X. tuberculata) and larval predators were all higher in both clear-cut sites and those with structural retention than in unharvested sites. Similarly, overall species richness and the abundance of nine species were higher in clear-cut than in unharvested sites. Species responses are discussed in an ecological context. Differences among the levels of forest retention harvesting were relatively minor compared with those of the clear-cut and unharvested area, sug- gesting that local habitat characteristics may play a more important role in determining the syrphid community than the landscape conÞguration. However, a landscape level effect was evident, sug- gesting that syrphids may be useful in reßecting changes in stand structure at the landscape scale. KEY WORDS Syrphidae, species richness, functional assemblages, variable retention harvesting, boreal forest Clear-cut harvesting is the primary system for extract- harvested condition (Franklin et al. 1997, Humphrey ing wood Þber in the Canadian boreal forest, and in et al. 1999). the short term, almost completely changes forest As new harvesting methods are developed, there structure over large areas. Both conservation beneÞts is a need to assess their effects on ßora and fauna in and economic incentives have led to the development comparison to traditional clear-cut systems, as well of alternative silvicultural methods in which partial as to Þnd indicators of sustainable forest manage- clearance retains some of the forest structural heter- ment (Dennis et al. 1995, Humphrey et al. 1999). ogeneity and preserves advanced regeneration. A re- Many insect taxa have shown sensitivity to harvest- cent approach is to harvest trees at variable intensities ing in boreal ecosystems, including ground-dwelling and spatial conÞgurations across the landscape to pro- or wood-decomposing species in clear-cut areas vide structural retention, a technique known as vari- (Niemela¨ et al. 1993, Punttila et al. 1994, Okland 1996) able retention harvesting (VRH) (Bergeron and Har- and aerial insect families and trophic assemblages in vey 1997, Franklin et al. 1997). One beneÞt of this type VRH sites (Deans et al. 2005). Dipteran species form of harvesting is the greater range of structural heter- a large proportion of the boreal insect fauna (Danks ogeneity within harvested landscapes relative to tra- and Foottit 1989) and are of particular interest be- ditional clear-cut methods. This structural retention cause of their ubiquity and Þne-scale habitat require- has been hypothesized to support a biological com- ments. Changes within this group may have wide- munity in harvested forests more similar to the un- spread effects on the functioning of boreal ecosystems because some functional groups are represented by few taxa and thus the loss of even a few species could 1 Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto, 33 Willcocks St., To- ronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B3. affect ecosystem processes (Pastor et al. 1996). Fo- 2 Corresponding author, e-mail: [email protected]. cusing on functional groups has been advocated be- 3 Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, 300 Water St., Peterbor- cause changes in ecosystem function may not be dis- ough, Ontario, Canada K9J 8M5. cernable with species analyses alone (Noss 1990, 4 Departamento de Ecologõ´a, Gene´tica y Evolucio´n, FCEN-Uni- versidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria, Pab 2, Buenos Aires Didham et al. 1996). Observed reductions in pollina- 1428, Argentina. tors (Aizen and Feinsinger 1994, Didham et al. 1996), 0046-225X/07/0308Ð0318$04.00/0 ᭧ 2007 Entomological Society of America April 2007 DEANS ET AL.: HOVERFLIES RESPOND TO VARIABLE RETENTION HARVESTING 309 decomposers (De Souza and Brown 1994, Didham et 2005), we expected to see a general decrease in species al. 1996), and the possibility of increased herbivorous richness and abundance with increasing forest struc- insect outbreaks with reduced parasitoid abundances tural retention. (Kruess and Tscharntke 1994, Roland and Taylor 1997), all have potential impacts on overall ecosystem processes. Didham et al. (1996) found that particular Materials and Methods functional groups such as pollinators and decomposers responded as trophic assemblages to altered habitat Study Area. Research was conducted in the lowland conditions. clay belt of northeastern Ontario, Canada (in the Lake Species and functional groups within the Syrphidae Abitibi model Forest; 49Њ35Ј N, 80Њ35Ј W), where large (hoverßies) family have been identiÞed as potential areas of the the boreal forest are dominated by ho- indicators of forest change (Sommaggio 1999, Hum- mogeneous peatlands of black spruce [Picea mariana phrey et al. 1999, Sugar 2000). It is one of the most (Mill.), Pinaceae], larch [Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. diverse families of Diptera, with Ϸ200 genera and Koch, Pinaceae], and balsam Þr (Abies balsamea L. Ͼ5,000 species (Katzourakis et al. 2001). In addition to Mill., Pinaceae). On upland sites, black spruce also their taxonomic diversity, hoverßies are widely col- grows homogeneously with white spruce [Picea glauca lected, in part because of their brightly colored ap- (Moench) Voss, Pinaceae] and balsam Þr, although pearance and their natural history is well known com- mixed forests of balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera pared with many other insect taxa (Katzourakis et al. L., Salicaceae), trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides 2001). As larvae, they present an extensive range of Michx., Salicaceae), white birch (Betula papyrifera habitat requirements, adaptations, and functional Marsh, Betulaceae), and jack pine (Pinus banksiana roles (Vockeroth and Thompson 1981, Rotheray 1991, Lamb., Pinaceae) are also found in glacial till de- Humphrey et al. 1999), including feeding habits as posits across the landscape. The climate of the area is phytophages, predators, or saprophages (Gilbert 1986, continental, with mean annual temperatures of Ϫ1.1Ð Vockeroth and Thompson 1981, Sommaggio 1999), 1.7ЊC, mean annual precipitation between 66.0 and whereas as adults, they display relatively homoge- 76.2 cm, and a frost-free period from June to mid- neous feeding habits but play a key role in pollinating September. Mean annual snowfall is heavy (280 cm), understorey vegetation (Kevan et al. 1993). and mean July temperatures range from 15 to 17ЊC, Syrphidae have three main characteristics that with precipitation between 20.3 and 25.4 cm. make them potential candidates for biological indica- Experimental Design. Harvesting with advance re- tors (Speight 1986, Sommaggio 1999): (1) they are generation protection (HARP) is one type of VRH common and easy to Þnd in almost all terrestrial eco- used in the Clay Belt area, which varies forest struc- systems, (2) their identiÞcation is not difÞcult for ture by clearing trees in strips ϳ5Ð7 m wide (harvested