EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - UNESCO World Heritage

“Primeval forest relic species“
Hundreds of wood-dwelling insect species
pick from the diverse wood inventory of the
near-natural beech forest. Th e respective
experts come into action consecutively, depending
on whether the tree is sickly, partly
dead or contributing to the diversity of biotopes
in the form of dead wood. Some of
them exclusively dwell inside the bark,
others in the dry wood or moist duff . Th ere
are some highly demanding species among
the wood-dwelling insects. Th ere are, for
instance, some beetles that require the excrements
of other particular species for
proper development. Some require a specifi c
level of humidity, such as is only found in
the root collar of old deciduous trees. Some
conditions will develop only over the course
of decades or even centuries. And then, the
insects must be capable of fi nding the respective
place. Th is means that the “ecological
niche” must be available in high continuity
– which requires a habitat and dead wood
tradition. If this is not the case, the species
is bound to vanish. Th is is exactly what makes
the beech so relevant. Within its range of
distribution, it will form and dominate stands
at a large scale. Moreover, it ascends from the
lowland up to high montane zones.
Hallmarks of “primeval forest relic species”
are their being highly demanding in terms
of habitat quality and continuity as well as
very limited mobility. A list of 115 primeval
forest relic species among xylobiontic beetles
has been drawn up for Central Europe
(MÜLLER et al. 2005a), with some 30 species
probably being typical of beech forests.
Th e fact that these species are not found in
Western and Central Europe but in relic
populations can be explained by the management
history of the forests, which are largely
lacking in the development stages of late
maturity and decomposition with a diverse
supply of dead wood. However, a total
of 19 primeval forest relic species have been
observed in the German component parts,
which is a remarkable fi gure in the Central
European context (tab. 2.6). It refl ects their
above-average ecological value within
Germany, characteris ing them as very nearnatural
old beech forests.
2. DESCRIPTION
Left:
Tab. 2.6 Occurrence of "primeval
forest relic species" (defi nition
according to MÜLLER et al.
2005) within nominated component
parts
(* 1 according to WINTER 2005,
* 2 according to the National Park Plan
Kellerwald-Edersee (2008),
* 3 data according to A. Weigel,
23 January 2009.
No data is available for Jasmund.)
The occurrence of 19
"primeval forest relic species"
refl ects the fact that
the old beech forests in
the German component
parts are highly ecologically
valuable.
“Primeval forest relic species”
are very demanding towards
their habitat:
Elater ferrugineus
Osmoderma eremita
Limoniscus violaceus
Nationale
Naturlandschaften
43