The importance of ecotone-structures of forest edges for the hibernation of predatory arthropods.
At five structurally different forest edges, stratified samples were taken along a transect from the open field into the forest up to a distance of 50 m from the forest edge. By far the highest abundances in most of the 22 considered taxa (orders and families) were found in the herbaceous layers and shrub belts close to intensely cultivated areas. Particularly the carabids (Coleoptera, Carabidae) and staphylinids (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) showed highest abundances and diversities in those herbaceous layers. The bark and the tree canopy at the forest edges seem to be of insignificant importance as overwintering sites.