Spore production and beetle visitation on the polypore Fomitopsis pinnicola

Abstract

Insects and fungi are important parts of dead wood systems. Polypores, the main structural decomposers of dead wood, have fruiting bodies frequently visited by insects. This could potentially be important for spore dispersal, but few studies have investigated whether insect visitation correlates with spore production. In this study nine time-lapse cameras were used to register beetle visits on Fomitopsis pinicola in Nordre Pollen and Østmarka nature reserve. In addition passive spore traps were used to monitor spore production for five polypores in Nordre Pollen once a month, from May to August to see how visiting rates of beetles related to spore production, time of day, air humidity and temperature. Spore production was at its peak in May, followed by June. No spores were found in August and only two polypores released spores during July. Activity of 4 beetle species was estimated from 51 852 high quality images and spore production was a good predictor for occurrence of beetles in May.