Wood-boring Beetles as Facilitators of Arthropod Diversity in Florida Keys Poisonwood Trees

Wood-boring beetles act as ecosystem engineers by producing hollow cavities in the branches of trees. These cavities are frequently used by various invertebrate species as a shelter to hide from both biotic and abiotic stressors. However, not much is known about how species are able to coexist through the partitioning of these beetle-facilitated resources. The aim of this study is to identify how members of an arboreal arthropod community differ in their use of dead wood resources, as well as how these resources may impact overall species richness. Dead poisonwood (Metopium toxiferum) branches were collected in a Florida Keys hammock forest, and the cavity and tree characteristics were measured while also identifying the species found within each cavity. From 20 trees, 1,546 cavities were sampled, and 35 different species identified inhabiting them. Properties of inhabited cavities were significantly different among arthropod species, including cavity entrance hole size and branch diameter. In addition, there was a strong positive correlation between total branch weight and species richness across trees. These results show that wood-boring beetles produce a wide range of resources which can be used by different arboreal arthropod species, and species-specific preferences for these resources and resource abundance help explain arboreal arthropod diversity and species coexistence.

Author

• Weber, Melody Grace Nagisa

Language

• en

Keyword

• ecosystem engineers
• wood-boring beetle
• community structure
• arboreal ants
• resource use
• insect ecology

Date created

• 2023

Type of Work

• Master's Thesis

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• Biological Sciences

Degree

• M.S.

Advisor

• Powell, Scott

Committee Member(s)

• Lill, John

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/c821gk48c