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Forestry plantations of Pinus radiata, managed through clearcutting method, would offer resistance to the movement of native fauna among remnants of native forest. In this study, we evaluate the possibilities of establishing connectivity corridors for native fauna in a forest landscape dominated by P. radiata, focusing on seven species with some level of specialisation in the use of different land covers and that exhibit different movement strategies. We sampled presences and abundances using several types of sampling to determine the abundance and crossing edge probabilities for the ground-dwelling beetle Ceroglossus chilensis; the mesocarnivores Conepatus chinga, Lycalopex culpaeus and Leopardus guigna; the terrestrial frogs Eupsophus septentrionalis and Pleuroderma thaul, and the understory bird Pteroptochos castaneus. We use species distribution modelling and circuit theory to calculate connectivity for each species. Finally, a spatial priorization approach was applied to obtain two scenarios of least-cost corridors. The results show that species with more specific requirements such as L. guigna, P. castaneus, P. thaul and E. septentrionalis, are unlikely to move through clear cuttings and young plantations, but their movement is possible through adult pine plantations with understory. For species that are habitat generalists such as C. chinga and L. culpaeus plantations were suitable for movement. The management of forest plantations should use multi-taxa assessments in the design of biological corridors that allow the connection of forest fragments.

Increasing evidence suggests that, depending on the structural complexity of a plantation, it can act as complementary habitat for insectivore birds and mammals. The magnitude of interactions such as insectivory, in turn, have been determined by species’ richness and abundance in an ecosystem. Therefore, insectivory can vary in function of the plantation’s complexity, and thereby, decrease chance of plantations damage due to herbivorous insects. Through an experimental procedure, the insect larvae mortality risk in pine plantations with different degree of structural complexity was measured, together with the herbivory levels on Aristotelia chilensis related to each plantation type. Attacks to artificial caterpillars were significantly greater and herbivory significantly less in structurally complex plantations, where we found higher woody species richness and abundance and a greater understory development, compared to simple plantations. These results suggest that insectivory does vary in function of the structural complexity within forestry plantations, and it is greater in those with higher species diversity, mediating a trophic cascade effect over vegetation, significantly diminishing herbivory. Therefore, forestry plantations should be managed into more structurally complex ones in order to allow a win–win scenario, where maintaining a greater biodiversity increases the provision of useful ecosystem services for these plantations.

Enhancing the structural complexity of commercial plantations could enrich the presence of mammals within them. We tested this hypothesis through a meta-analysis in order to determine whether more complex plantations, with a dense understory, can sustain more mammal diversity and if mammals respond differently pending on its taxonomic affiliation, body size, and diet group. We recorded 71 cases of forest–plantation comparisons, and 10 cases of plantation–plantation comparisons. Both richness and abundance of native mammals were lower in plantations than in native forests, although there was no significant difference in body size, dietary group, and taxonomic affiliation between those two habitats. Complex plantations showed higher richness and abundance of native mammals, independently of the plantation type. Taxonomic affiliation, body size and diet did not significantly differ between complex and simple plantations. Structural complexity of commercial plantations may increase mammal diversity, hence, enriching the auxiliary value of forestry plantations for biological conservation. Therefore, forest plantation management ought to pursue the enhancement of structural complexity.