Species richness and abundance of Pselaphidae (Coleoptera) in old-growth and 40-year-old forests in New Hampshire

Abstract

Species richness and abundance of Pselaphidae, the ant-like litter beetles, are compared between two mixed deciduous–conifer forest sites: one old growth, and the other cut in 1944–1945. Comparisons were based on forest litter samples and flight intercept trap collections obtained through the season. Twelve species were collected at the old-growth site, and nine at the cut site. The pselaphid fauna of the sites is compared using coefficient of community and percent similarity. The coefficient of community is similar at both sites based on litter samples, while the percent similarity is low in leaf litter samples and moderate in rotten wood samples. Rotten wood species were at similar densities within a habitat at both sites, but were more numerous in flight intercept traps at the old-growth site because of the greater amount of rotting wood available. Flight activity is suspected to be tied to optimum weather conditions when adults seek their patchily distributed habitat. Eutyphlus schmitti could be used as an indicator species for undisturbed forests in the Northeast. Maximum species richness for Pselaphidae is probably reached after the forest achieves a steady state in biomass accumulation, a period of 100–120 years after clear-cutting operations.