USE OF CWD IN FREqUENTly BURNED HaBITaTS By GROUND-DWEllING aRTHROpODS

INTRODUCTION Large dead wood or coarse woody debris (CWD) with a diameter >10 cm is an important resource for many arthropods and other animals that use it for food, oviposition sites, protection from environmental extremes, and foraging habitat (Elton 1966, Grove 2002b, Harmon and others 1986). Over 400 species of insects are known to use woody debris as a food resource in the Southeastern United States (Hanula 1996), and similar or greater numbers of arthropods have been reported to use it at other locations throughout the world (Grove 2002b). In addition to their direct contribution to forest diversity, these saproxylic arthropods are an important part of the forest food web (Harmon and others 1986). However, little work has been done on the role of terrestrial CWD in the forests of the Southeastern United States (McMinn and Crossley 1996).