TY - JOUR

T1 - Canopy structure influences arthropod communities within and beyond tree identity effects

T2 - Insights from combining LiDAR data, insecticidal fogging and machine learning regression modelling

AU - Wildermuth, Benjamin

AU - Penanhoat, Alice

AU - Sennhenn-Reulen, Holger

AU - Matevski, Dragan

AU - Drescher, Jochen

AU - Aubry-Kientz, Mélaine

AU - Seidel, Dominik

AU - Schuldt, Andreas

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s)

PY - 2024/3/1

Y1 - 2024/3/1

N2 - Forest canopies host an abundant but often neglected diversity of arthropods, which requires careful attention in times of ongoing biodiversity loss. Yet, how tree species composition interacts with canopy structure in shaping arthropod communities remains largely unknown. Here, by combining mobile laser scanning and insecticidal fogging with a machine learning algorithm, we studied which canopy architectural properties affect canopy arthropod communities in monospecific and mixed stands of broadleaved European beech and the coniferous Norway spruce and non-native Douglas fir in Germany. Evaluating the abundances and ecological guild diversity of ∼ 90,000 arthropods and 27 partly novel high-resolution structural variables, we identified vegetation volume and tree species identity as weak predictors of arthropod abundance and ecological guild diversity. In contrast, structural heterogeneity, i.e. structural complexity, vertical layering and variability of canopy gaps—which were highest in coniferous stands—were strong positive drivers. Despite this, arthropod ecological guild diversity was lower in non-native Douglas fir. Mixed stands had intermediate arthropod abundance and ecological guild diversity. Our study shows that habitat heterogeneity and tree species-identity are closely interlinked in shaping associated canopy arthropod communities. Positive effects of habitat heterogeneity on arthropod ecological guild diversity were often uncoupled from resource availability, and the key role of our novel intra-canopy gap indices suggests that they should be considered as indicators in future research on forest heterogeneity-diversity relationships. Broadleaf-conifer mixtures may be suitable to mediate negative tree-species identity effects when adapting forests to global change.

AB - Forest canopies host an abundant but often neglected diversity of arthropods, which requires careful attention in times of ongoing biodiversity loss. Yet, how tree species composition interacts with canopy structure in shaping arthropod communities remains largely unknown. Here, by combining mobile laser scanning and insecticidal fogging with a machine learning algorithm, we studied which canopy architectural properties affect canopy arthropod communities in monospecific and mixed stands of broadleaved European beech and the coniferous Norway spruce and non-native Douglas fir in Germany. Evaluating the abundances and ecological guild diversity of ∼ 90,000 arthropods and 27 partly novel high-resolution structural variables, we identified vegetation volume and tree species identity as weak predictors of arthropod abundance and ecological guild diversity. In contrast, structural heterogeneity, i.e. structural complexity, vertical layering and variability of canopy gaps—which were highest in coniferous stands—were strong positive drivers. Despite this, arthropod ecological guild diversity was lower in non-native Douglas fir. Mixed stands had intermediate arthropod abundance and ecological guild diversity. Our study shows that habitat heterogeneity and tree species-identity are closely interlinked in shaping associated canopy arthropod communities. Positive effects of habitat heterogeneity on arthropod ecological guild diversity were often uncoupled from resource availability, and the key role of our novel intra-canopy gap indices suggests that they should be considered as indicators in future research on forest heterogeneity-diversity relationships. Broadleaf-conifer mixtures may be suitable to mediate negative tree-species identity effects when adapting forests to global change.

KW - Biodiversity

KW - Component-wise boosting

KW - Insects

KW - LiDAR

KW - Structural complexity

KW - Biology

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85188053032&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.ecolind.2024.111901

DO - 10.1016/j.ecolind.2024.111901

M3 - Journal articles

AN - SCOPUS:85188053032

VL - 160

JO - Ecological Indicators

JF - Ecological Indicators

SN - 1470-160X

M1 - 111901

ER -