Non weaving spiders on native woodlands and Eucalyptus plantations in Western Mexico: diversity and distribution patterns

Eucalyptus spp. are commonly planted, forming non-native plantations, including the tropics and their wildlife conservation value is relatively unknown. Recent studies have concluded that secondary forests and tree plantations are less diverse than well-developed tropical rain forests. However, introduced Eucalyptus stands harbored similar species richness to surrounding native woodland in temperate woodlands in North America though the identity of the species present may differ. Species composition, as well as dominance curves and differences in community structure add additional insight to understanding faunistic responses to replacement of native woodland by Eucalyptus plantations. Here, we compared species richness, diversity patterns, and the distribution of non-weaving spiders between native woodlands and Eucalyptus plantations in a temperate region of Mexico. We found more Lycosidae species in all plantation stands. Other community attributes were not consistently different between plantations and native woodlands. This is explained by similarities between, and differences within, the understory of the two main vegetation types. Multivariate analyses identified three spider groups and five spider species could be identified as indicators of these groups. A comparison of the number of species of the wandering spiders between the two vegetation types suggests a compensation pattern that is reported here for the first time.