Tree-cavity survival for biodiversity in temperate forests of South America: A multi-scale approach

Abstract

Tree cavities are critical habitat attributes for a diversity of species that use them for reproduction and shelter. Worldwide, their availability has shown an intense decline in forests because of the loss of old-growth stands and the reduction in cavity recruitment. These disturbance processes are influenced by factors occurring across different scales: from cavities to landscapes. We analyzed the survival of 613 cavities in 455 trees in old-growth and second-growth forests over 10 years in Andean temperate forests in southern South America, Chile. Kaplan–Meier and Cox proportional hazards models were used to determine median cavity survival and its influencing factors at the cavity, tree, stand and landscape scales. The median survival was six years. Non-excavated cavities (6 years) survived longer than excavated cavities (4 years), with a significantly longer lifespan in large decaying trees. Cavities’ survival was strongly influenced by cavity- and tree-scale factors, including their origin, the vertical cavity depth, tree decay class, tree branch order and tree diameter class. In old-growth forests, most cavities were found in live decaying trees, while in second-growth forests they were mostly in long-dead trees (snags). We suggest that management should maintain forest structural complexity, retaining dead wood and trees in different stages of decay to permit a continuous supply of substrates over time for the formation of cavities.