Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-29T16:21:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Yessenia P R Gordon.pdf: 717933 bytes, checksum: c7dc153c439300ccf7e171e3d2900797 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-03-30 / Los bosques de tierra firme de la Amazonía ecuatoriana están sujetos a drámaticas alteraciones, debido principalmente a las actividades de extracción de madera en la región. Se considera a la familia de escarabajos Carabidae como un potencial grupo de organismos que podrían indicar las transformaciones de estos hábitats. Este estudio fue realizado en bosques No-alterados, Medianamente-alterados e Alterados, distribuidos entre 19 localidades de bosques amazónicos de tierra firme del Ecuador, con muestreos de carábidos de dosel colectados a través de la metodología de fumigación. Para testar si hubo influencia de la transformación de los bosques sobre las comunidades de Carabidae de dosel, se estimó la riqueza de especies en cada tipo de bosque y se analizó la bondad de ajuste al modelo log-normal de distribución de abundancia entre especies. Además, se utilizó la metodología IndVal para detectar especies indicadoras en cada tipo de bosque. Las comunidades estudiadas presentaron bajas abundancias para casi todas las especies, con pocas especies que pueden ser consideradas dominantes. La riqueza de especies en bosques con mediano grado de perturbación fue mayor que en los otros tipos de bosque, lo que respalda la hipótesis del disturbio intermedio. La distribución de las abundancias de Carabidae no se ajustó al modelo log-normal en bosques primarios, lo que es contrario a la expectativa teórica. En bosques Medianamente-alterados y Alterados fueron encontrados taxa indicadores que servirían como detectores potenciales de cambios ambientales. Asi, en este estudio, los patrones de diversidad de las comunidades de Carabidae de dosel cambian ante las modificaciones de sus hábitats lo que se observa en las innumerables formas de respuesta de estas comunidades. Los patrones observados no sustentan la hipótesis de que la competición interespecífica tenga un rol importante en la organización de esa comunidad y sugieren que la dinámica de dispersión puede ser un factor importante para la respuesta de esa comunidad a las alteraciones. / As florestas de terra firme da Amazônia equatoriana estão sujeitas a dramáticas perturbações, devido principalmente às atividades de extração de madeira na região. Considera-se a família de besouros Carabidae como um potencial grupo de organismos que poderia indicar as transformações destes hábitats. Este estudo foi desenvolvido em florestas Não-alteradas, Medianamente-alteradas e Alteradas, distribuídas entre 19 locais de floresta amazônica de terra firme do Equador. Os carábideos de dossel foram amostradas através da metodologia de fumigação. Para testar se teve influência da transformação das florestas sobre as comunidades de Carabidae de dossel, se estimou a riqueza de espécies em cada tipo de floresta e se analisou a qualidade do ajuste ao modelo log-normal de distribuição de abundância entre espécies. Além disso, se utilizou a metodologia IndVal para detectar espécies indicadoras em cada tipo de floresta. As comunidades estudadas mostraram baixas abundâncias para quase todas as espécies, com poucas espécies que podem ser consideradas dominantes. A riqueza de espécies nas florestas com grau mediano de perturbação foi maior que nos outros tipos de floresta, o que suporta a hipótese do distúrbio intermediário. Contrário à expectativa teórica, nas florestas Não-alteradas a distribuição das abundâncias de Carabidae não se ajustou ao modelo log-normal. Nas florestas Mediamente-alteradas e Alteradas foram encontrados taxa bioindicadores que serviriam como potenciais detectores de mudanças ambientais. Assim, neste estudo, os padrões de diversidade das comunidades de Carabidae de dossel mudam frente às modificações dos seus habitats, o que se observa nas inúmeras formas de resposta das comunidades. Os padrões observados não suportam a hipótese de que a competição interespecífica tenha um papel importante na organização dessa comunidade, e sugerem que a dinâmica de dispersão pode

Este trabalho trata da revisão taxonômica das espécies de Morion do Continente Americano (M. arida, M. boliviensis, M. brasiliensis, M. cordata, M. costigera, M. cycloma, M. lafertii, M. monilicornis e M. simplex), sendo que apenas uma não ocorre na região Neotropical (M. monilicornis). Foi realizado um estudo morfológico detalhado de todas as espécies, visando encontrar novos caracteres diagnósticos para testar a hipótese taxonômica vigente e para facilitar a identificação das espécies. Não foram identificadas espécies novas e as nove spécies mostraram-se válidas. A análise de novas estruturas, além de revelar características antes não estudadas (como braquipteria em M. brasiliensis) deu mais robustez à hipótese existente. Também foram confeccionados mapas de distribuição geográfica de todas as espécies, o que revelou que algumas apresentam distribuição bastante restrita (principalmente as espécies braquípteras), enquanto outras têm uma distribuição bastante ampla. Uma chave dicotômica para a identificação das espécies foi preparada, visando facilitar a identificação das mesmas. / This study is a taxonomic revision of the New World Morion, which has nine valid species (M. arida, M. boliviensis, M. brasiliensis, M. cordata, M. costigera, M. ycloma, M. lafertii, M. monilicornis and M. simplex), of which, only one of them is not recorded in the Neotropical region (M. monilicornis). A detailed morphological study was done aiming for finding out new diagnostic characteristics in order to test the current taxonomic hypothesis and to make specific identification easier. These nine species were analyzed and remained valid; no new one was found. The analysis of new structures made it possible to find some characters never studied before (e.g., M. brasiliensis brachyptery) and strengthened the previous hypothesis. The maps representing the geographic distribution of all species revealed that some of them have a limited area of occurrence (mainly the flightless species), although others are widespread. A dichotomic identification key was also done to facilitate species identification.

<p>Carabide pripadaju kosmopolitskoj grupi insekata, sa preko 40.000 vrsta &scaron;irom Sveta,<br />od tog broja 2700 vrsta je registrovano u Evropi. Trenutno se smatra da su trĉuljci<br />najrazvijenija familija podreda Adephaga. Desile su se mnoge izmene u sistematici<br />familije Carabidae od prvog kljuĉa za determinaciju &ldquo;Royal Entomological Society<br />handbook&ldquo; (Lindroth,1974). Prvi znaĉajan doprinos razumevanja ekologije, taksonomije<br />i rasprostranjenosti karabida naĉinio je Carl Heinz Lindroth, koji je pokrio veći deo<br />severne Evrope kao i razvijene delove Severne Amerike, rad Lindrota pratio je Thiele<br />(1977). Kasniji rad na identifikaciji karabida u Evropi izmenio je kljuĉ za determinaciju<br />vrsta centralnog dela Evrope. Takodje, napravljen je veći broj ilustrovanih kljuĉeva za<br />determinaciju karabida na prostoru Francuske. Karabide su tipiĉni polifagni predatori,<br />veoma znaĉajni za odrţanje agroekosistema i drugih ekosistema zbog ĉega su ĉest<br />predmet istraţivanja. Pored toga &scaron;to su poznati kao korisni insekti, odnosno regulatori<br />brojnosti &scaron;tetnih populacija, neki predstavnici familije Carabidae mogu biti i &scaron;tetoĉine<br />biljaka kako gajenih tako i korovskih, ĉime se uloga pripadnika ove familije znaĉajno<br />uvećava. Cilj ovog rada jeste determinacija imaga familije Carabidae i njihova potvrda<br />putem molekularnih analiza (PCR), kao i utvrĊivanje kvalitativnog i kvantitativnog<br />sastava trĉuljaka u poljima p&scaron;enice, kukuruza i &scaron;ećerne repe na podruĉju, Beĉeja,<br />Maglića i Rimskih &Scaron;anĉeva, tokom 2010. i 2011. godine. TakoĊe, je posmatrana<br />dominantnost, abundantnost, stepen faunistiĉke sliĉnosti karabida i uticaja<br />agrometeorolo&scaron;kih uslova sredine na njihovu brojnost i sastav vrsta. Tokom<br />dvogodi&scaron;njih istraţivanja u tri napred navedena useva i na sva tri lokaliteta, metodom &bdquo;<br />Barber posuda&ldquo; sakupljeno je ukupno 4.420 jedinki familije Carabidae. Kada<br />posmatramo brojnost po godinama, u prvoj godini, prikupljeno je vi&scaron;e jedinki tj. 2803,<br />koje su svrstane u 51 vrstu, dok je u 2011.g., brojnost bila skoro duplo manja, a<br />zabeleţeno je svega 1.617 jedinki, odnosno identifikovano je 47 vrsta, &scaron;to je u vezi sa uslovima sredine u datim godinama istraţivanja. TakoĊe, na osnovu dobijenih rezultata moţe se zakljuĉiti da je struktura karabida zavisna od vladajućih biotiĉkih i abiotiĉkih faktora, te kombinacijom ovih faktora stvaraju se specifiĉni mikroklimatski uslovi, a sa tim i karakteristiĉna fauna. Nakon uraĊenih molekularnih analiza, kod vrsta Calathus fuscipes, Poecilus versicolor, Amara aenea, Calathus ambiguus, Anchomenus dorsalis, Dolichus halensis, Pterostichus cupreus, Harpalus distinguendus, Harpalus rufipes, Laemostenus terricola, Pterostichus melanarius, Harpalus dimidiatus, Anisodactylus binotatus, Trechus quadristriatus, Carabus coriaceus, Carabus cancellatus, BLAST analiza je potvrdila status vrste koja je primarno identifikovana na osnovu morfolo&scaron;kih karakteristika. Vrste, kod kojih je utvrĊena visoka stopa sliĉnosti sa drugim vrstama iz istog roda i za koje nema referentnih sekvenci u banci gena, kao &scaron;to su Pterostichus (Poecilus) sericeus, Harpalus azureus, Pterostichus incommodus, Harpalus griseus, Pterostichus (Cophosus) cylindricus, Pterostichus vernalis, Pterostichus (Feronidius) melas i Calosoma auropunctatum predstavljaju doprinos svetskoj barkoding bazi podataka.</p> / <p>Carabidae belong to cosmopolitan group of insects, with over 40,000 species worldwide, where out of that number 2700 species is registered in Europe. It is currently considered that ground beetles are the most developed family of the sub-order Adephagae. There have been many changes in the systematic approach of the Carabidae family since the first determination key called &quot;Royal Entomological Society Handbook&quot; (Lindroth, 1974). The first significant contribution to the understanding of the ecology, taxonomy and distribution of Carabidae was made by Carl Heinz Lindroth that covered the greater part of the Northern Europe as well as the developed parts of Northern America; Lindroth&rsquo;s work was followed by Thiele (1977). Subsequent work on the identification of Carabidae in Europe changed the key for determination of the species of central Europe. Moreover, there have been a larger number of illustrated keys for determination of Carabidae on the territory of France. Carabidae are the typical polyphagous predators, very important for the maintenance of agro ecosystems and other ecosystems therefore they are often the subject of research. In addition to being known as beneficial insects, that is regulators of the number of pest populations, some representatives of the Carabidae family can also be pests of cultivated plants as well as weeds; therefore the role of the members of this family is increased significantly. The aim of this study is to determine the adults of the Carabidae family and their confirmation in molecular analysis (PCR), as well as to determine the qualitative and quantitative composition of ground beetles in fields of wheat, maize and sugar beet on the territory of Beĉej, Maglić and Rimski &Scaron;anĉevi, during 2010 and 2011. Furthermore, the dominance, abundance, degree of faunal similarity of Carabidae and the impact of agro-meteorological conditions of the environment on the number and composition of species were observed. During the two-year research in the three above-mentioned crops and in all three locations, using the method of &quot;Barber traps&quot; a total of 4,420 individuals of the Carabidae family were collected. When we look at the strength throughout years, in the first year more individuals were collected, that is 2,803 in number, which are classified into 51 species, while in 2011 the number was almost half that, and only 1,617 individuals were recorded, and 47 species identified, which is</p><p>related to environmental conditions in given years of study. Moreover, based on the<br />obtained results it can be concluded that the composition of Carabidae is dependent on<br />the ruling biotic and abiotic factors, and the combination of these factors creates a<br />specific microclimate conditions, thus the characteristic fauna. Having applied the<br />molecular analysis with the following species &ndash; Calathus fuscipes, Poecilus versicolor,<br />Amara aenea, Calathus ambiguus, Anchomenus dorsalis, Dolichus halensis,<br />Pterostichus cupreus, Harpalus distinguendus, Harpalus rufipes, Laemostenus<br />terricola, Pterostichus melanarius, Harpalus dimidiatus, Anisodactylus binotatus,<br />Trechus quadristriatus, Carabus coriaceus, Carabus cancellatus &ndash; the BLAST analysis<br />confirmed the status of a species that is primarily identified based on morphological<br />characteristics. Species, in which a high rate of similarity with other species of the same<br />order was found, and for which there is no reference sequence in the gene bank, such as<br />Pterostichus (Poecilus) sericeus, Harpalus azureus, Pterostichus incommodus,<br />Harpalus griseus, Pterostichus (Cophosus) cylindricus, Pterostichus vernalis,<br />Pterostichus (Feronidius) melas i Calosoma auropunctatum represent a contribution to<br />the world bar-coding database.</p>

The aim of the work was to study the communities of epigeic beetles in plantations of energetic plants (Dactylis glomerata, Arrhenatherum elatius, Phalaris arundinacea, Helianthus tuberosus) and in surrounding lawn biotope. The method of pitfall trapping was used for beetle sampling from 2008 to 2010 during the growing season. Carabid beetles (Carabidae) and rove beetles (Staphylinidae) were used as bioindicators. In total 69 species and 1789 individuals were captured and evaluated. Eurytopic species were more common than stenotopic in all habitats, also the value of the index of beetle communities was low in all plots. RDA analysis proved the influence of surrounding biotope on beetle communities. It was concluded that communities of epigeic beetles might be also affected by the climatic factors, long termed population fluctuations of individual species, edge effect and microclimate inside the vegetation.

Dans les paysages agricoles, les habitats non cultivés constituent une source importante pour l’entomofaune auxiliaire de cultures. Il est donc important d’adapter la gestion de ces habitats afin de bénéficier au mieux des services fournis par la diversité de ces auxiliaires. L’objectif de cette thèse est de comprendre comment la gestion des bandes enherbées permet d’améliorer le service du contrôle biologique délivré par les carabes. Nous avons d’abord examiné par quels mécanismes, les changements dans la diversité fonctionnelle des carabes augmentent leur capacité de suppression de ravageurs. Ainsi, a été comparée au laboratoire, l’efficience de prédation sur une population de proie, par des assemblages de carabes qui ont différents niveaux de diversité de taille. Par ailleurs, à travers une expérimentation mise en place dans des champs de céréales, nous avons étudié les effets de cinq modes de gestion des bandes enherbées sur la structure végétale de ces habitats non cultivés, et par conséquent sur la structure des communautés carabiques. Nos résultats révèlent l’absence d’une partition de ressources entre les carabes de tailles différentes. La quantité et de la taille de proies consommées augmente avec la taille des carabes. La suppression des proies a ainsi été fortement augmentée par la présence des carabes de grande taille dans les assemblages. Ces résultats suggèrent que l’augmentation de la diversité de taille chez les carabes augmente leur efficience de prédation par l’effet d’échantillonnage. Nous avons mis en évidence une redondance fonctionnelle entre les espèces de carabes. Cette redondance permet de réduire la variabilité spatio-temporelle dans la fonction de régulation exercée sur les populations de ravageurs. L’importance des bandes enherbées en tant qu’habitat pour plusieurs espèces de carabes importantes pour le contrôle biologique, a été mise en évidence. La gestion influence les carabes seulement dans les bandes enherbées. La diversité fonctionnelle des plantes au sein de ces bandes enherbées a été identifiée comme le principal facteur favorisant la richesse spécifique des carabes. L’activité-densité des carabes a, par ailleurs, été favorisée par une végétation peu hétérogène et un pourcentage élevé de sol nu. Les carabes de tailles différentes divergent dans leur réponse à la structure de la végétation. Cette divergence semble être liée aussi à la variation d'autres traits d'histoire de vie des espèces (i.e. régime alimentaire). Les connaissances et les résultats produits dans le cadre de ce travail de thèse, serviront au développement d’indicateurs mesurant l’impact des pratiques de gestion sur le contrôle biologique exercé par les carabes / In the agricultural landscapes, non cropped habitats are an important source for the beneficial entomofauna of crops. It is therefore important to adapt the management of these habitats to best benefit of the services provided by the diversity of this beneficial entomfauna. The objective of this thesis is to understand how field margin management could improve the biological control service delivered by ground beetles. First, we examined by which mechanisms, changes in the functional diversity of ground beetles increases their capacity of pest suppression. Thus, efficiency of predation by ground beetle assemblages, which have different levels of body size diversity, on a prey population was compared in the laboratory. Also, through an experiment installed in cereal fields, we studied the effects of five field margin management on the vegetation structure of these non cropped habitats, and therefore on the structure of ground beetle communities. Our results revealed the absence of resource partitioning among the different-sized ground beetles. The amount and size of prey consumed increased with increasing ground beetle body size. Prey suppression was, therefore, strongly strengthened by the presence of large ground beetles in the assemblages. These results suggest that increasing ground beetles size diversity increases their predation efficiency through the sampling effect. We have showed a functional redundancy among species of ground beetles. This redundancy could reduce the spatial and temporal variability in pest suppression by ground beetles. Our study showed the importance of the field margins as a habitat for many ground beetle species that are important for biological control. Management influenced ground beetles only in the field margin. Plants functional diversity within these field margins has been identified as the main factor promoting the species richness of ground beetles. However, activity-density of ground beetles was promoted by less heterogeneous vegetation and high percentage of bare ground. The responses to the vegetation structure vary between ground beetles with different body sizes. This diversity in ground beetles responses to the vegetation structure appears to be also related to variation in other life history traits (i.e. diet). The knowledge and results produced as part of this thesis will be used in the development of indicators measuring the impact of management on biological control delivered by ground beetles

The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) will monitor ground beetle populations across a network of broadly distributed sites because beetles are prevalent in food webs, are sensitive to abiotic factors, and have an established role as indicator species of habitat and climatic shifts. We describe the design of ground beetle population sampling in the context of NEON's long-term, continentalscale monitoring program, emphasizing the sampling design, priorities, and collection methods. Freely available NEON ground beetle data and associated field and laboratory samples will increase scientific understanding of how biological communities are responding to land-use and climate change.

No description available.

The monotypic cave carabid genus Darlingtonea is widely distributed along the eastern band of the Mississippian/Pennyroyal plateau in Kentucky and northern Tennessee. DNA sequence data from the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) was collected from one to four individuals from 27 populations, and patterns of phylogeography and population structure were inferred from COI haplotypes. A hierarchical analysis of molecular variance found low nucleotide diversity within populations and statistically significant variation among geographically-defined groups tested based on two a priori hypotheses of structure. Population structure among five distinct genetic clusters identifies approximate locations of barriers to gene flow among closely grouped caves in the upper Rockcastle River drainage. Partial sequences of one mitochondrial (COI) and one nuclear (wingless) gene were gathered from 60 to 106 terminal taxa, including representatives of all five genera of cave trechines from Kentucky and Tennessee. Alignments were analyzed using maximum parsimony, Bayesian, and maximum likelihood methods of phylogenetic inference. Comparison of analyses demonstrates conflicting tree topologies among individual markers and different reconstruction methods. Despite a lack of consensus regarding genus-level relationships, most analyses supported each genus as natural (monophyletic) with the exception of Pseudanophthalmus

The maintenance of downed woody debris supplies is increasingly being recognized as an integral part of forest management. In order to better manage this resource, it is important to assess its role in supporting biodiversity. In this thesis, I investigate the responses of carabid communities to variation in woody debris availability in an experimental manipulation of woody debris volume in closed canopy forests and following a biomass harvest in a clearcut. Within closed-canopy forests, total carabid abundance and the abundances of eight species increased significantly with increasing volumes of various types of woody debris, particularly large diameter, late-decay conifer wood. Similarly, a strong affinity with woody debris was observed in the clearcut. These findings suggest that reductions in woody debris will have negative consequences for carabids and indicate the need to ensure a diverse and abundant supply of woody debris during stand development.

The maintenance of downed woody debris supplies is increasingly being recognized as an integral part of forest management. In order to better manage this resource, it is important to assess its role in supporting biodiversity. In this thesis, I investigate the responses of carabid communities to variation in woody debris availability in an experimental manipulation of woody debris volume in closed canopy forests and following a biomass harvest in a clearcut. Within closed-canopy forests, total carabid abundance and the abundances of eight species increased significantly with increasing volumes of various types of woody debris, particularly large diameter, late-decay conifer wood. Similarly, a strong affinity with woody debris was observed in the clearcut. These findings suggest that reductions in woody debris will have negative consequences for carabids and indicate the need to ensure a diverse and abundant supply of woody debris during stand development.