Beetle assemblages captured using static panel traps within New South Wales pine plantations Christine Stone, 1 * Grahame Goodyer, 2 Kerrie Sims, 1 Trent Penman 1 and Angus Carnegie 1 1 Forest Science Centre, NSW Industry and Investment, PO Box 100, Beecroft, NSW 2119, Australia. 2 255 Kissing Point Road, Dundas, NSW 2117, Australia. Abstract The abundance and composition of beetles captured over two summers in panel traps baited with either a-pinene, b-pinene, a combination of a- and b-pinene or just ethanol preserving solution alone, and located in several Pinus plantations in northern or southern New South Wales (NSW) were examined. Effective forest biosecurity surveillance requires a sound working knowledge of the insect species, both endemic and exotic, already established in NSW’s pine plantations. A total of 288 beetle species (or distinct morphotypes) from 60 families were recorded from this survey. Families known to have potentially damaging wood-boring insects were well sampled, the only exception being the Buprestidae for which no specimens were captured. The most abundant group trapped were the Scolytinae, including high numbers of Xyleborus perforans (an exotic ambrosia beetle), Hypothenemus eruditus (an exotic bark beetle), Ips grandicollis (an exotic bark beetle) and Ambrosiodmus latecompressus (a native ambrosia beetle). There were no new exotic species recorded. When considering the total catch, 26 species were identified as exotic and 58 species were confirmed as new accessions to the Forestry Commission of NSW Insect Collection. Initial comparisons between trap samples were based on species richness and the Shannon–Wiener diversity index using analysis of variance. Comparisons between lures, years and sites were further investigated through the application of non-metric multi- dimensional scaling and analysis of similarities. We did not detect any significant differences between the four attractants when comparing beetle assemblages in terms of overall abundance and species diversity captured in either the southern or northern regions. Although sampling intensity for the southern sites was greater than that achieved for the northern sites, the beetle assemblages captured in the northern pine plantations were more abundant and diverse compared with the samples obtained from the Pinus radiata plantations in the south. Key words beetle assemblage, coleoptera, pheromone trap, pine plantation, survey. INTRODUCTION Forests New South Wales (NSW) manages the largest soft- wood plantation estate in Australia. In 2009, the net market value of the timber in their 204 000 ha estate was approxi- mately A$670 million (Forests NSW 2009). The dominant softwood plantation species grown in southern and central NSW is Pinus radiata D. Don whereas in northern, subtropical NSW several softwood species are planted including the Pinus elliottii Engelm. X Pinus caribaea Morelet hybrid, P. elliottii and Pinus taeda L. Although plantation health surveys are carried out annually on behalf of Forests NSW surprisingly little is known of the insect communities inhabiting these plantations (Moore 1962; Carnegie et al. 2008). Effective forest biosecurity surveillance, however, necessitates a working knowledge of what insects, both endemic and exotic, are established in the plantations. In addition, officers of the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service routinely inter- cept exotic insects associated with timber products such as solid wood packing materials at ports of entry into Australia. Although the Forestry Commission of NSW Insect Collection (FCNI) is an important resource for forest biosecurity in NSW, a more complete inventory of beetles already established in the softwood plantations would be desirable. Static traps incorporating pheromone or kairomone lures are effective in attracting a broad range of bark and wood-boring beetles associated with conifers (Flechtmann et al. 2001; Bashford 2008; Wylie et al. 2008; Miller & Rabaglia 2009). In particular, flight traps baited with ethanol and the semiochemi- cal a-pinene provide an effective approach for the early detec- tion of bark and ambrosia beetles (e.g. Miller & Rabaglia 2009). Static traps with different volatile lures, were estab- lished in softwood plantations in northern and southern NSW during 2006 and 2007 as part of a national evaluation of static trapping systems to monitor Sirex noctilio Fabricius (Hymenoptera: Siricidae), a damaging exotic insect of Pinus radiata D. Don. (Bashford 2008). An earlier study in *christine.stone@industry.nsw.gov.au Australian Journal of Entomology (2010) 49, 304–316 © 2010 The Authors Journal compilation © 2010 Australian Entomological Society doi:10.1111/j.1440-6055.2010.00769.x