Comparative study of the Fomes fomentarius and Trametes gibbosa beetle communities in Hidegv\xedz Valley, Sopron Mts., Hungary

Abstract

The forest, which is exposed to fewer anthropogenic impacts, has a rich and complex community. In Hungary, the quantity of dead wood has an ever-increasing significance in the forests. The decomposition of wood starts with the xylophagous insects, followed by the appearance tinder fungus, which transforms the wood into a form suitable for decomposers. Fungus beetles decompose most of the fungus. Therefore, besides consumer organizations, demolition organizations also play an essential role in building the forest ecosystem. In Central Europe, we have a little information about the beetle communities of tinder fungi. During our research, we investigated the beetle communities of Fomes fomentarius and Trametes gibbosa, which were collected from the Sopron-mountains in West Hungary. In F. fomentarius, the most common beetle species that we found was Bolitophagus reticulatus with about 100 individuals in four fruiting bodies, while in T. gibbosa, Cis boleti had the largest number of individuals with more than 5300 in four specimens. The beetle communities in the two tinder fungi were different, the difference probably caused by the structure and the nutritional value of the fungi.