Factors affecting the structure of Coleoptera assemblages on bracket fungi (Basidiomycota) in a Brazilian forest

Insect–fungal interactions are an important but understudied aspect of tropical forest ecology. Here we present the first large-scale study of insect communities feeding on the reproductive structures of macrofungi (basidiomes) in the Neotropics. This trophic interaction is not well characterized in most ecosystems; however, beetle consumption of basidiomes is thought to be affected by fungal factors, via mechanisms analogous to those observed in plant–herbivore interactions and in some interactions with fungi as hosts in the Holarctic region. We investigated how the composition of beetle assemblages varies as a function of fungal taxonomic distance, basidiome consistency, and hyphal systems. We collected 367 basidiomes belonging to the orders Polyporales and Hymenochaetales in the subtropical Araucaria angustifolia forest region of southern Brazil, along with any fauna present or without it. Basidiomes were maintained individually in the laboratory in plastic containers for up to three...