Checklist of aquatic Diptera (Insecta) of Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia, a UNESCO world heritage site

Abstract

Studies on aquatic Diptera in the Plitvice Lakes National Park (Croatia) conducted in the last 50 years have produced 157 species and 7 taxa of aquatic Diptera placed in 13 families. Samples were collected at 25 sampling sites representing the four main types of karst aquatic habitats: spring, stream, tufa barriers and lakes. All records of all the aquatic families of Diptera in Plitvice Lakes NP are summarized, including previously unpublished data. Twelve species new for Plitvice Lakes NP are recorded for the first time, belonging to the families: Chironomidae – Labrundinia longipalpis (Goetghebuer, 1921), Nilothauma brayi (Goetghebuer, 1921), Potthastia longimanus Kieffer, 1922, Polypedilum (Polypedilum) nubeculosum (Meigen, 1804), Tanytarsus brundini Lindeberg, 1963; Dixidae – Dixella autumnalis (Meigen, 1838); Scathophagidae – Acanthocnema latipennis Becker, 1894 and Stratiomyidae – Oxycera pardalina Meigen, 1822, Oxycera limbata Loew, 1862, Oxycera turcica Ustuner & Hasbenli, 2004, Nemotelus pantherinus (Linnaeus, 1758), Oplodontha viridula (Fabricius, 1775). The most species-rich family was the Chironomidae with 62 species (and an additional seven taxa), followed by the Empididae with 22 species and Limoniidae with 19 species. The highest number of species was recorded in springs. The relatively low number of species in certain families and the complete absence of some aquatic families shows that further research into the aquatic Diptera in Plitvice Lakes NP is needed.

The first record of Dixella aestivalis (Meigen, 1818) (Diptera: Dixidae) in Serbia

“…In the territory of the Balkan Peninsula, except Greece, it has also been recorded in Croatia, but the finding dates from 1987. This finding has not been confirmed in recent research by IVKOVIĆ et al (2020). Untill now published data about D. aestivalis only a few specimens were registered on Balkan Peninsula, this finding has great value.…”

Defining Patterns and Rates of Natural vs. Drought Driven Aquatic Community Variability Indicates the Ongoing Need for Long Term Ecological Research

“…Emergence traps were fastened to the streambed, with an unnetted gap of approximately 4 cm proximal to the streambed enabling the free movement of larvae both into and out of the sampling area. On top of each emergence trap was a collecting container filled with a preservative (2% formaldehyde with detergent as a surface-tension-reducing agent [ 26 ]). Traps were positioned in different representative microhabitats at each site, although the microhabitat structure is very dynamic and changeable over time ( Table 1 ).…”

Peeling the Layers of Caddisfly Diversity on a Longitudinal Gradient in Karst Freshwater Habitats Reveals Community Dynamics and Stability

“…The side frames of each trap were covered with a 1-mm mesh net. On the top of each emergence trap was a collecting container filled with preservative (2% formaldehyde with detergent) [ 22 ]. Traps were placed at different substrates present at the sites (listed in Table 1 ).…”

“…The karst freshwater ecosystems in the Dinaric western Balkan ecoregion (ER5, [ 20 ]) have been repeatedly shown to be hotspots for freshwater insect diversity, especially when it comes to the habitat-rich ecosystem complex of barrage lake-forming rivers and streams [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. As caddisfly communities followed the same trend, exhibiting high biodiversity within these karst ecosystems comprising of springs, different stream types and tufa barriers (e.g., [ 25 , 26 ]), they were chosen as an ideal polygon for the comprehensive testing of different diversity measures.…”