Authors: Oettel, Janine; Braun, Martin;Connell, James;Hoch, Gernot;Gschwantner, Thomas;Lapin, Katharina ;Essl, Franz;Gossner, Martin M.;

Knowledge of habitat characteristics and preferences of saproxylic insects and their response to variation in availability is critical for assessing the ecological impacts of deadwood management. The relationship between deadwood amount and saproxylic insects is evident. Further, many studies report the importance of host species, albeit with contrasting results regarding the degree of specialization, which decreases with increasing deadwood decomposition. Yet, a difference between deciduous and coniferous species is recognized. Habitat diversity, expressed as a variability of deadwood dimension and decomposition, shows a positive influence on insect diversity. However, quantitative studies of species succession along the decomposition process are lacking. We tested a rapid assessment based on feeding galleries and boreholes to investigate habitat characteristics for saproxylic species and the underlying drivers for their occurrence, richness and community composition. We tested factors at different spatial scales that influence the occurrence of individual saproxylic insect families, assessed their influence on family richness, and the community composition. This is one among few studies testing if a rapid assessment method at family-level is appropriate for deriving habitat preferences and thresholds.