Effects of termite activities on a secondary forest and plantations in the mid-subtropical zone

doi:10.17520/biods.2021324

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims Termites are common forest insects in subtropical forests, however, little attention has been paid to their damage on forests or contribution to soil carbon cycles through their effect on litter and wood decomposition in plantations and secondary forests in subtropical zones. Here, we investigated the range of termite activities in three typical types of forests in subtropical regions, i.e., Cunninghamia lanceolataplantation, Castanopsis carlesii plantation, and C. carlesiisecondary forest.

Methods We surveyed the foraging height and area of termite activities on tree stems in the three forest types to assess the effects of termite damage. We also investigated litter layer characteristics and the degree to which it was affected by termites to evaluate the role of termites in litter decomposition.

Results We found that: (1) termite activities are common in three forest types, while higher foraging preference occurred in plantations than in secondary forests; (2) the foraging area in stems of Castanopsis carlesiisecondary forests was only 1.65% and 0.59‰ of those in Castanopsis carlesii and Cunninghamia lanceolataplantations, respectively, with preference of termites on tree stems in Cunninghamia lanceolatacompared with Castanopsis carlesiiplantations; (3) the foraging area and height of termites in Cunninghamia lanceolataplantation are 27.7 and 9.2 times of those in Castanopsis carlesiiplantation, and the rate of the affected area of 0-50, 50-100, 100-150, 150-200 cm tree stem is 4 : 3 : 2 : 1 in Cunninghamia lanceolata, respectively, but are 99 : 1 in the 1 m height stem of Castanopsis carlesii; (4) termite activities were widely found in foliar litter as well as dead and fallen wood in all secondary forests and plantations, indicating an important role in the process of decomposition.

Conclusion Our results indicate that termites may have higher effects on plantations than secondary forests and have negative effects in damaging tree stems. Termites also likely promote the decomposition of foliar litter and dead wood in secondary forest. These results will provide theoretical support for the management of Cunninghamia lanceolata plantations in the mid-subtropical zone.

Key words: termite, Cunninghamia lanceolata, secondary forest, plantation, biodiversity

Dingyi Wang, Xiangyin Ni, Kai Yue, Xiaoyue Zhang, Zijia Kang, Ling Zhu, Fuzhong Wu. Effects of termite activities on a secondary forest and plantations in the mid-subtropical zone[J]. Biodiv Sci, 2022, 30(3): 21324.

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URL: https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/10.17520/biods.2021324

https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/Y2022/V30/I3/21324

Figures/Tables 6

Table 1 Forest characters of Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation, Castanopsis carlesii plantation, and C. carlesii secondary forest in the study plots

林分类型 Forest type	树高 Tree height (m)	胸径 DBH (m)	密度 Density (ind./ha)	林龄 Forest age (yr)
杉木人工林 Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation	11.30	0.15	2,860	9
米槠人工林 Castanopsis carlesii plantation	8.77	0.88	2,400	9
米槠次生林 Castanopsis carlesii secondary forest	7.87	0.51	13,300	9

Fig. 1 Traces of termite activity on the trunks of Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation (CLP), Castanopsis carlesii plantation (CCP), and C. carlesii secondary forest (CSF)

Fig. 2 Ratio of termite damaged of the living trees (A), dead standing trees and downed logs (B) of Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation (CLP), Castanopsis carlesii plantation (CCP), and C. carlesii secondary forest (CSF) (mean ± SD)

Fig. 3 Height of Cunninghamia lanceolata and Castanopsis carlesii living trees (A, C) and dead standing trees (B, D) damaged by termites and their proportion (mean ± SD). CLP, Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation; CCP, Castanopsis carlesii plantation; CSF, C. carlesii secondary forest

Fig. 4 The total area of Cunninghamia lanceolata and Castanopsis carlesii damaged by termites and the size and proportion of different height areas (mean ± SD). (A) Termite damaged area in the stem of living trees; (B) Rate of termite damaged area of living trees; (C) Rate of damaged area in 2-meter-height stem of living trees; (D) Termite damaged area in 2-meter-height stem of different heights in different forest. CLP, Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation; CCP, Castanopsis carlesii plantation; CSF, C. carlesii secondary forest.

Fig. 5 The coverage of litter on the surface and the degree of impact by termites in Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation (CLP), Castanopsis carlesii plantation (CCP), and C. carlesii secondary forest (CSF) (mean ± SD)

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