Ground-Dwelling Spider Community Responses to Forest Management in a Mediterranean Oak Forest.

ABSTRACT: Timber production is one of the most important ecosystem services provided by hardwood forests, but clear-cutting causes severe soil disturbance. There is a current need to develop alternative forest management practices to clear-cutting in order to simultaneously promote timber production, preserve biodiversity and enhance forest health and economic value. Here, we experimentally manipulated a Quercus pubescens forest to evaluate the effects of a thinning gradient (i.e., partial tree removal) ranging from 25% to 75% basal area reduction and a logging residue retention (i.e., slash management) on ground-dwelling spider abundance and species richness. These two alternative management practices were compared with clear-cutting (100% basal area reduction) and logging residue exportatio

SUBMITTER: Menival C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12266807 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature