The expected future intensification of forest disturbance as a consequence of ongoing anthropogenic climate change highlights the urgent need to more robustly quantify associated biotic responses. Saproxylic beetles are a diverse group of forest invertebrates representing a major component of biodiversity that is associated with the decomposition and cycling of wood nutrients and carbon in forest ecosystems. Disturbance-induced declines or shifts in their diversity indicate the loss of key ecological and/or morphological species traits that could change ecosystem functioning. Functional and phylogenetic diversity of biological communities is commonly used to link species communities to ecosystem functions. However, our knowledge on how disturbance intensity alters functional and phylogenetic diversity of saproxylic beetles is incomplete. Here, we analyzed the main drivers of saproxylic beetle abundance and diversity using a comprehensive dataset from montane primary forests in Europe. We investigated cascading relationships between 250 years of historical disturbance mechanisms, forest structural attributes and the taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity of present-day beetle communities. Our analyses revealed that historical disturbances have significant effects on current beetle communities. Contrary to our expectations, different aspects of beetle communities, that is, abundance, taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity, responded to different disturbance regime components. Past disturbance frequency was the most important component influencing saproxylic beetle communities and habitat via multiple temporal and spatial pathways. The quantity of deadwood and its diameter positively influenced saproxylic beetle abundance and functional diversity, whereas phylogenetic diversity was positively influenced by canopy openness. Analyzing historical disturbances, we observed that current beetle diversity is far from static, such that the importance of various drivers might change during further successional development. Only forest landscapes that are large enough to allow for the full range of temporal and spatial patterns of disturbances and post-disturbance development will enable long-term species coexistence and their associated ecosystem functions.

持续不断的人为气候变化将导致森林干扰的未来加剧，这表明迫切需要更有效地量化相关的生物反应。鼠尾草甲虫是森林无脊椎动物的不同种类，代表了生物多样性的主要组成部分，与森林生态系统中木质养分和碳的分解和循环有关。扰动引起的多样性下降或转移表明丧失了可能改变生态系统功能的关键生态和/或形态物种特征。生物群落的功能和系统发育多样性通常用于将物种群落与生态系统功能联系起来。但是，我们对干扰强度如何改变红花甲虫的功能和系统发育多样性的认识尚不完善。这里，我们使用来自欧洲山地原始森林的综合数据集，分析了saproxylic甲虫丰度和多样性的主要驱动因素。我们调查了250年的历史干扰机制，森林结构属性与当今甲虫社区的分类学，系统发育和功能多样性之间的级联关系。我们的分析表明，历史干扰对当前的甲虫群落具有重大影响。与我们的期望相反，甲虫群落的不同方面，即丰度，分类学，系统发育和功能多样性，对不同的干扰机制成分做出了响应。过去的干扰频率是通过多种时间和空间途径影响四叶甲虫群落和生境的最重要成分。枯木的数量及其直径对saproxylic甲虫的丰度和功能多样性有积极的影响，而系统发育多样性则受冠层开放性的积极影响。通过分析历史扰动，我们发现当前的甲虫多样性远非静态的，因此在进一步的演替发展过程中，各种驱动因素的重要性可能会发生变化。只有具有足够大的森林景观，以允许扰动和扰动后发展的时空格局的全部范围，才能使物种长期共存及其相关的生态系统功能。我们观察到，当前的甲虫多样性远非一成不变，因此在进一步的演替发展过程中，各种驱动因素的重要性可能会发生变化。只有具有足够大的森林景观，以允许扰动和扰动后发展的时空格局的全部范围，才能使物种长期共存及其相关的生态系统功能。我们观察到，当前的甲虫多样性远非一成不变，因此在进一步的演替发展过程中，各种驱动因素的重要性可能会发生变化。只有足够大的森林景观，以允许扰动和扰动后发展的时空格局的全部范围，才能使物种长期共存及其相关的生态系统功能。