title: Relationships between plant diversity and the abundance and α-diversity of predatory ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in a mature Asian temperate forest ecosystem.
abstract: A positive relationship between plant diversity and both abundance and diversity of predatory arthropods is postulated by the Enemies Hypothesis, a central ecological top-down control hypothesis. It has been supported by experimental studies and investigations of agricultural and grassland ecosystems, while evidence from more complex mature forest ecosystems is limited. Our study was conducted on Changbai Mountain in one of the last remaining large pristine temperate forest environments in China. We used predatory ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) as target taxon to establish the relationship between phytodiversity and their activity abundance and diversity. Results showed that elevation was the only variable included in both models predicting carabid activity abundance and α-diversity. Shrub diversity was negatively and herb diversity positively correlated with beetle abundance, while shrub diversity was positively correlated with beetle α-diversity. Within the different forest types, a negative relationship between plant diversity and carabid activity abundance was observed, which stands in direct contrast to the Enemies Hypothesis. Furthermore, plant species density did not predict carabid α-diversity. In addition, the density of herbs, which is commonly believed to influence carabid movement, had little impact on the beetle activity abundance recorded on Changbai Mountain. Our study indicates that in a relatively large and heterogeneous mature forest area, relationships between plant and carabid diversity are driven by variations in environmental factors linked with altitudinal change. In addition, traditional top-down control theories that are suitable in explaining diversity patterns in ecosystems of low diversity appear to play a much less pronounced role in highly complex forest ecosystems.
authors.affiliation: UCL Department of Geography, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zou
authors.affiliation: The State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China ; College of Life and Environmental Science, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Weiguo
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sang
authors.affiliation: The State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Fan
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.affiliation: UCL Department of Geography, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jan Christoph
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Axmacher
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D044822:Biodiversity; D002681:China; D001517:Coleoptera / Q000502:physiology*; D065928:Forests; D016014:Linear Models; D010944:Plants / Q000469:parasitology*; D011235:Predatory Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D025341:Principal Component Analysis