The possibilities of applying various methods to study Coleoptera give unexpected and original results. The studies were carried out with the help of fermental crown traps in 2018-2020 on the ...territory of eight regions in the central part of European Russia. The biodiversity of the Coleoptera that fall into crown traps includes 294 species from 45 families. The number of species attracted to the fermenting bait is about a third of the total number of species in the traps (this is 97.4% of the number of all of the caught specimens). The largest number of species that have been found in the traps belong to the families Cerambycidae, Elateridae and Curculionidae. The most actively attracted species mainly belong to the families Cerambycidae, Nitidulidae and Scarabaeidae. The species of these families are equally attracted by baits made of beer, white and red wines. In order to identify the Coleoptera biodiversity of a particular biotope, two-year studies are sufficient, and they should be carried out throughout the vegetation season. Especially good results can be obtained from studies of rare species that are actively attracted by such baits. It is possible to study the vertical-horizontal distribution of Coleoptera fauna in individual biotopes.
Usage of a variety of non-trivial ways to study Coleoptera gives unexpected and original results. The studies were conducted using simple traps with fermenting baits in the central part of European ...Russia. There were 286 trap exposures, and 7906 Coleoptera specimens (208 species from 35 families) were collected. The largest number of species belonged to the families Cerambycidae (35 species), Curculionidae (26 species), and Elateridae (25 species). One species each was noted in 12 families. Traps were applied in five open habitats (dry meadow, shore, floodplain meadow, cuttings under power lines, and glade in woods). Only 13 species were common to all habitats:
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. Dry meadows were dominated by
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. A shore was dominated by
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. The dominant species in floodplain meadows were
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. On cuttings under power lines, the most numerous were
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. In forest glades, the maximum abundance data were obtained for
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. The Shannon index was greatest in meadow habitats of varying degrees of moisture, while it was minimal on the shore. The increase in the Simpson index was also characteristic of the shore. These data indicate reduced species diversity combined with the dominance of several species in this biotope. The maximum species diversity with the highest level of species alignment was characteristic of meadow plots, while lower values were obtained under power lines and in forest glades. We recommend the usage of fermental traps with beer for ecological studies of the Coleoptera fauna in open biotopes.
During four years of sampling by canopy traps with fermenting baits, adults of the
Quedius dilatatus
rove beetle were collected in large quantities together with the
Vespa crabro
hornet across ...several regions in Central European Russia. Contrary to previous reports which stemmed from collecting methods inadequate for this ‘rare’ inquiline of the European hornet
Vespa crabro
,
Q.
dilatatus
is found to be a common and widespread beetle. Moreover, the maximum numbers of beetles were found in the period between the first (spring) and second (summer) peaks of the hornet abundance, i.e. at the early stages of the hornet nests’ growth to their peaks. A similar pattern was revealed by the same type of sampling during one year within a smaller area of the Mordovia State Nature Reserve, albeit with variation determined by the type of sampled forest. Apparently, such adjustment of the life cycle of the inquiline beetle to that of its host is a compromise between the possibility for efficient search of the hornet nests by beetles using olfactory stimuli, and the availability of a sufficient time period needed for the development of the beetle larvae. The latter, as shown by earlier studies, prey on fly larvae in the debris around active nests.
In conservation agriculture, slugs are considered significant pests and their monitoring is a key option in the integrated pest management framework. Together with molluscicide applications, ...predators such as ground beetles can offer a tool for slug control in the field. Through the evaluation of slug and ground beetle monitoring strategies, this work compared their presence in conventional and conservation agricultural plots. The invasive Deroceras invadens was the dominant slug species to occur in all sampling periods. Among Carabidae, Poecilus cupreus and Pterostichus melas were the most abundant species, and Bembidion spp., Brachinus spp., and Harpalus spp. were also common. Beer-baited pitfall traps, whatever their alcoholic content, caught more slugs and ground beetles than wooden boards used as shelters. Slugs were more abundant in conventional plots than in conservation plots, possibly due to the lower presence of natural enemies such as ground beetles. Despite possible impacts on Carabidae, beer-baited pitfall traps should be considered a useful tool for slug monitoring and for the planning of molluscicide applications. Soil management such as minimum- or no-tillage and the presence of cover crops are important elements influencing both slug and ground beetle presence, possibly playing a key role in the maintenance of natural enemy populations.
Studies on the vertical distribution of arthropods in temperate forests have revealed the uneven vertical distribution of communities. Many factors influence these patterns simultaneously. However, ...there are still many questions related to the vertical distribution of Coleoptera in deciduous forests of the temperate zone. The research was carried out within the territory of the Republic of Mordovia (the center of the European part of Russia). Fermental traps with a bait made of fermenting beer with sugar were used to collect Coleoptera. The collections were carried out from May to September 2020 at five sites in a deciduous forest. We set traps at a height of 1.5, 3.5, 7.5 and 12 m above the ground) on the branches of trees. Ninety-two species were identified at the end of studies at different heights. The families Nitidulidae (15 species), Cerambycidae (14 species), Elateridae (7 species), Curculionidae (7 species) and Scarabaeidae (7 species) had the greatest species diversity. The greatest species diversity was recorded at a height of 1.5 m, while the smallest one was recorded at a height of 7.5 m. The minimum number of specimens was recorded at a height of 12 m. The largest differences in the Jaccard similarity index were obtained between samples from a height of 1.5 and 12 m. The Shannon’s diversity index was higher near the ground than in the tree crowns (at heights of 7.5 and 12 m), and the Simpson index had the opposite tendency. Glischrochilus hortensis and to a lesser extent Cychramus luteus preferred to live in the lowest layers of deciduous forest (1.5 m). Cryptarcha strigata was mainly found with relatively high numbers at heights of 3.5 m and 7.5 m. The abundance and occurrence of Protaetia marmorata and Quedius dilatatus were higher in the uppermost layers of the crowns. The number of saproxylic beetle species at heights of 3.5–12 m was almost the same, while in the surface layer it decreased. The number of anthophilic beetle species was also lower at a low altitude. Our data confirm the relevance of sampling in forest ecosystems at different altitudes while studying arthropod biodiversity.
Research on the Arthropoda distribution in temperate forest ecosystems has shown that communities are distributed vertically in unequal numbers. However, this issue still has research gaps in ...relation to the vertical stratification of Coleoptera in pine forests of the temperate zone. This study was conducted in the Republic of Mordovia situated in central part of European Russia. We used fermental traps to collect Coleoptera (the bait is fermenting beer with sugar and honey). The sampling was conducted from May to September 2021 in five sites of pine forests. One hundred and twenty-five species from 36 families were identified. The highest species richness was found in Nitidulidae and Cerambycidae (19 species each), Elateridae (13), Curculionidae (7) and Scarabaeidae (6). The highest number of species (84 species) was obtained at the height of 1.5 m, while the smallest species richness (44 species) was found at the height of 12.0 m. At the height of 12 m, we also registered the minimum number of specimens. Twenty-four species from 11 families were common to all the heights studied. Cryptarcha strigata and Glischrochilus grandis preferred heights of 3 and 1.5 m. Cryptarcha undata and Protaetia marmorata were more common at a height of 7 m with a frequency of 61.4–79.6% and 68.2–79.6%, respectively. The absolute number of saproxyl and anthophilic beetle species was higher in the ground layer and at the undergrowth level. These studies expand our understanding of the vertical distribution of beetles in pine forests of the temperate zone of European Russia.
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