SHORT-TERM EFFECTS OF MODERN HEATHLAND MANAGEMENT MEASURES ON CARABID BEETLES (COLEOPTERA: CARABIDAE)

For the maintance of dry heathland ecosystems the implementation of adequate conservation measures is required. Besides traditional land use practices (e.g. mowing) several modern management measures (e.g. sod-cutting, choppering) were developed and applied. In the present study the carabid beetle fauna of three different managed heathland sites in a coastal heathland on the Baltic isle of Hiddensee, Germany, was analysed. Pitfall trapping yielded a total of 4,018 carabid beetles belonging to 48 species. Species and individual richness was highest in the sod-cutted site followed by choppering and mowing. Diversity was highest on the mown site, due to the most even distribution of species. Species composition differed clearly among sites indicated by RDA ordination and Jaccard's similarity index. The application of sod-cutting and mowing present two important habitats for specialised carabid beetles: Sod-cutting creates secondary, highly dynamical habitats suitable for several dune species while mowing seemed to preserve a typical (Calluna) heathland carabid fauna. The use of different management measures could lead to a more heterogeneous heathland, create suitable habitats for several specialised carabid beetle species and therefore might enhance diversity.