Influence of Habitat Heterogeneity on Structure and Composition of a Chrysomelidae (Coleoptera) Assemblage in a Temperate Forest in Northeast Mexico

Successional and seasonal changes of leaf beetles and their indicator value in a fragmented low thorn forest of northeastern Mexico (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae)

“…Environmental heterogeneity is one determining factor in the structure of communities, and, although it can be variable, its increase is positively related to the species richness (Tamme et al 2010, Stein et al 2014, Yang et al 2015). Such an effect has been observed in other studies of Chrysomelidae; for example, in temperate forests of northeastern Mexico, a high diversity is associated with a heterogeneous mosaic of vegetation with different times since last disturbance (Sandoval-Becerra et al 2018). In that sense, the influence of heterogeneity was made evident in this study through the detailed comparisons of species richness, abundance, and diversity between areas with different times of succession.…”

“…In contrast, the absence of differences in seasonal diversity at early succession areas can be attributed to generalist species, which are dominant in highly heterogeneous areas (Büchi and Vuilleumier 2014). Consequently, dominance and diversity remain constant throughout the year, regardless of available resources in each season, since generalists feed on multiple plant species and tolerate a wide range of microclimatic conditions (Sandoval-Becerra et al 2018). An example of such species is Brachycorynapumila , because its abundance was higher in areas of four years of succession in both seasons, thus suggesting a wide abiotic tolerance; also, B.pumila is associated with several species of plants in different genera, such as Abutilon , Malvastrum , or Sida , among others (Staines 1986).…”

“…These include, for example, the type and height of each forest stratum (floristic structure), percentage of vegetation or tree cover, diversity of plants, abundance of young foliage, and specific characteristics of the host plant (Bach 1981, Morrow et al 1989, Řehounek 2002, Charles and Basset 2005, Baselga and Jiménez-Valverde 2007, Şen and Gök 2009, 2014). In addition, because of their food specificity, leaf beetles are also significantly impacted by modifications in various ecological gradients (Sánchez-Reyes et al 2015, Sandoval-Becerra et al 2017), which abiotic factors influence the ability to acquire available resources (Sandoval-Becerra et al 2018). Therefore, any disturbance as a result of the loss of vegetation cover and land use change will have a direct effect on these insects (Wąsowska 2004).…”

“…Despite their importance, the consequences of fragmentation, disturbance, and secondary succession on chrysomelid communities have been quantified only in a few studies (Brown and Hyman 1986, Bach 1990), mainly in temperate wet forests (Linzmeier et al 2006, Marinoni and Ganho 2006, Linzmeier and Ribeiro-Costa 2009, 2011) and tropical savannas (Pimenta and De-Marco 2015). In addition, in temperate oak forests of northeastern Mexico, the amount of time since last disturbance influences diversity, abundance and spatial distribution of Chrysomelidae (Sandoval-Becerra et al 2018), as well as their microclimatic niche parameters (Sandoval-Becerra et al 2017). On the other hand, few works have assessed consistently the effect of seasonality on successional changes of insect communities (Janzen 1976, Linzmeier and Ribeiro-Costa 2009), and some robust studies conducted during several years in areas with different level of conservation in South America, have shown a strong relation between leaf beetles and seasonal changes (Linzmeier and Ribeiro-Costa 2012, 2013).…”

Modelagem da distribuição espacial de >i<Atta sexdens rubropilosa>/i< (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): correlações, covariâncias e coocorrências

“…distribuição espacial de insetos tem sido analisada sistematicamente com vistas a compreender padrões de organização no espaço, envolvendo diferentes níveis taxonômicos, de forma a compreender o estabelecimento de populações em diferentes áreas ou a distribuição da diversidade de espécies(Segev et al 2015, Wiezik et al 2017. Conhecer padrões de organização de espécies no espaço e também no tempo é imprescindível para a compreensão da dinâmica de populações e comunidades e das relações intraespecíficas e tróficas das espécies (Sandoval-Becerra et al 2018). Particularmente, espécies consideradas chave para determinados sistemas, seja por ocuparem papel importante no contexto da manutenção da diversidade biológica ou ainda por impactarem negativamente o ambiente onde estão inseridas, exibem por certo padrões de distribuição espacial importantes para a compreensão dos aspectos envolvidos na análise interativa delas com o ambiente(Latzka et al 2016).Atta sexdens rubropilosa é uma espécie de formiga cortadeira importante no contexto agrícola e florestal brasileiro, com ampla distribuição pelo Brasil e América do Sul(Della Lucia et al 2013).…”