Data from: 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 months to allow beetles to develop to adulthood, at which
point the beetles were collected. We found that 207 basidiome specimens
representing 40 species were associated with beetles. We recorded 447
occurrences of Coleoptera, representing 90 morphospecies from 20 families.
We found that assemblages of fungivorous Coleoptera were more similar
among more closely related fungi. Furthermore, the beetle assemblages
varied as a function of basidiome toughness, which is influenced by
sporocarp consistency and hyphal system type. The associations between
beetles and basidiomes resemble those reported previously in temperate
zones, suggesting continuity in the structure of such associations across
a wide latitudinal range.