Survival and habitat preferences of adult Bolitophagus reticulatus

1. Data from a 4-year mark–recapture study of the fungivorous tenebrionid beetle Bolitophagus reticulatus at a locality in central Sweden and a trapping study of the species elsewhere in the same region are used to describe the survival and habitat preferences of the species.
2. The adult beetle was found to survive for up to three winters. A minimum estimate of the yearly survival rate was 0.20.
3. The beetle was found to occur preferentially on tree trunks that were either standing or lying but only touching the ground along a minor part of their length; that were relatively thick; and that carried many Fomes fomentarius sporocarps. In contrast to previous information for this species, the beetle was found to use living sporocarps to a large extent, and not only dead ones.
4. An experiment with beetles given a choice between living and dead fungus tissue indicated that pairs of one male and one female beetle preferred living fungus while single beetles preferred dead fungus.