Understanding biodiversity patterns of subterranean beetles in the Dinaric karst

Bregović, Petra (author), Zagmajster, Maja (mentor)

We investigated biodiversity patterns of subterranean beetles in the Western Balkans. The study area extended over the Dinarides and Eastern parts of the Southern Calcareous Alps. We focused our research on the factors and processes that have shaped the biodiversity patterns. Besides environmental factors, we used also species traits (range size, body size) as predictor variables in understanding species richness patterns. The study group were troglobiotic beetles belonging to three families: Trechinae (Carabidae), Cholevinae (Leiodidae), and Pselaphinae (Staphylinidae). Most of the analyses were done on dataset of 431 species (156 Carabidae, 275 Leiodidae) from 2523 localities, with some that included also the dataset of 49 species of Pselaphinae from 128 localities. We covered the area with a grid of 20x20 km cells for mapping and analysing the patterns. Species richness patterns, discovered using two biggest subfamilies, were robust to adding new subfamily with seven newly described species. Among extrinsic factors, habitat heterogeneity had the biggest influence on species richness patterns, followed by historical climate stability, while productive energy had a neglecting effect. Even though there are many rare (small ranged) species, it is still common (large ranged) species that contribute most in forming overall richness patterns and species-richest cells. The ranges of species body sizes per 20x20 km cell were associated to species richness and distribution range sizes. Correlation analysis of subsets revealed that the largest species contributed most to the species richness patterns. Adding information on body sizes to environmental variables in the models greatly increased the explained variation of species richness pattern. With new approaches, we improved understanding of terrestrial subterranean biodiversity patterns.

• Language: English
• Keywords: biodiversity, macroecology, Dinarides, Western Balkans, troglobiotic beetles, Carabidae, Leiodidae, Staphylinidae
• Work type: Doctoral dissertation
• Typology: 2.08 - Doctoral Dissertation
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Year: 2020
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-116022
• COBISS.SI-ID: 22880771
• Publication date in RUL: 08.05.2020

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Razumevanje vzorcev biodiverzitete podzemnih hroščev na Dinarskem krasu

Abstract

Raziskovali smo vzorce biotske pestrosti podzemnih hroščev zahodnega Balkana. Raziskovalno območje je obsegalo Dinaride in vzhodne dele Južnih apneniških Alp. Osredotočili smo se na dejavnike in procese, ki so oblikovali vzorce biotske pestrosti. Poleg okoljskih dejavnikov smo uporabili tudi lastnosti vrst (velikost areala, telesna velikost) kot napovedne spremenljivke pri razumevanju vzorcev vrstne pestrosti. Vključili smo podatke o troglobiotskih hroščih iz treh poddružin: Trechinae (Carabidae), Cholevinae (Leiodidae) in Pselaphinae (Staphylinidae). Večino analiz smo opravili na naboru podatkov o 431 vrstah (156 Trechinae, 275 Cholevinae) z 2523 lokalitet, analizirali pa smo tudi nabor podatkov o 49 vrstah Pselaphinae z 128 lokalitet. Za kartiranje in analize smo uporabili kvadratno mrežo 20x20 km. Vzorci vrstne pestrosti, ki so se pokazali s podatki dveh največjih poddružin, so se ohranili tudi če smo dodali novo poddružino s sedmimi novimi vrstami za znanost. Med okoljskimi dejavniki je na vzorce vrstne pestrosti najbolj vplivala habitatna pestrost, čemur je sledila historična klimatska stabilnost, medtem ko je imela produkcijska energija zanemarljiv pomen. Čeprav je bilo veliko redkih vrst (majhni areali), so pogoste vrste (veliki areali) tiste, ki so imele večji pomen pri oblikovanju vzorcev vrste pestrosti in vrstno najbogatejših kvadratov. Pokazali smo, da so razponi telesnih velikosti znotraj kvadratov 20x20 km povezani z vrstno pestrostjo in areali vrst. V korelacijski analizi podsetov se je pokazalo, da večje vrste prispevajo največ k celotnemu vzorcu vrstne pestrosti. Upoštevanje telesne velikosti poleg okoljskih spremenljivk je v modelu zelo povišalo razloženo varianco v vrstni pestrosti. Z novimi pristopi smo bistveno izboljšali razumevanje kopenskih podzemne biodiverzitetnih vzorcev.

• Keywords: biodiverziteta, makroekologija, Dinaridi, zahodni Balkan, troglobiotski hrošči, Carabidae, Leiodidae, Staphylinidae