Are spruce boles hot spots for enchytraeids in clear-cut areas?

I investigated the effects of stem wood on enchytraeid abundance and size distribution in a Norway spruce forest after clear-cutting. Eighteen plots (16 m(2)) were prepared and planted with Norway spruce according to nor-mal forestry practice and pieces of logs discarded by the logging machine were returned to nine plots. Six years after the clear-cutting enchytraeid abundance was significantly lower at 10 cm distance from added spruce boles than next to the boles and than in the control plots. Enchytraeids were significantly smaller in control plots than in wood plots and in an adjacent forest. Wood addition significantly decreased the biomass of ground vegetation six years after the clear-cutting, possibly because wood-decomposing fungi immobilized soil nutrients. Because enchytraeids feed on both fungal hyphae and plant litter, the beneficial effect of more fungal resources was counteracted by a lesser amount of grass litter in the vicinity of spruce holes.