Does selective logging change ground-dwelling beetle assemblages in a subtropical broad-leafed forest of China?

Selective logging with natural regeneration is advocated as a near-to-nature strategy and has been implemented in many forested systems during the last decades. However, the efficiency of such practices for the maintenance of forest species are poorly understood. We compared the species richness, abundance and composition of ground-dwelling beetles between selectively logged and unlogged forests to evaluate the possible effects of selective logging in a subtropical broad-leafed forest in southeastern China. Using pitfall traps, beetles were sampled in two naturally regenerating stands after clearcuts (ca. 50 years old, stem-exclusion stage: selectively logged 20 years ago) and two mature stands (> 80 years old, understory re-initiation stage: selectively logged 50 years ago) during 2009 and 2010. Overall, selective logging had no significant effects on total beetle richness and abundance, but saproxylic species group and some abundant forest species significantly decreased in abundance in selectively logged plots compared with unlogged plots in mature stands. Beetle assemblages showed significant differences between selectively logged and unlogged plots in mature stands. Some environmental characteristics associated with selective logging (e.g., logging strategy, stand age, and cover of shrub and moss layers) were the most important variables explaining beetle assemblage structure. Our results conclude that selective logging has no significant impacts on overall richness and abundance of ground-dwelling beetles. However, the negative effects of selective logging on saproxylic species group and some unlogged forest specialists highlight the need for large intact forested areas for sustaining the existence of forest specialist beetles.