DIVERSITY AND THE MAIN ECOLOGICAL REQUIREMENTS OF THE ... · ecosistemele Masivului Ceahlău ( gol sub alpin, pădurea de conifere, pădurea de foioase ), Pădurea de foioase Gâdinţi

Analele Ştiinţifice ale Universităţii „AL. I. CUZA” Iaşi, s. Biologie animală, Tom LII, 2006

DIVERSITY AND THE MAIN ECOLOGICAL REQUIREMENTS

OF THE SPECIES OF CARABIDAE (COLEOPTERA,

CARABIDAE) FROM NEAMŢ COUNTY

MIRCEA VARVARA1 and FULGA ZUGRAVU2

1 “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University, Faculty of Biology, Iaşi. [email protected]

2 Liceul Industrial, Roman

Abstract. The present paper is a synthetic one dealing with the epigeic ground beetles found in the Neamţ

County. It presents the alpha diversity of ground beetles from seven sites (coniferous forests from the Ceahlău

Mountain, deciduous forest from Gădinţi locality, maize crops from two sites) , the variation of the relative

abundance of ground beetles, the Shannon index, the evenness, the main ecological requirements of the species

and the general characteristics of the coenoses of ground beetles.

Keywords: Coniferous, deciduous forests, maize crops, alpha diversity, relative abundance, Shannon index,

evenness, main ecological requirements

Rezumat. Diversitatea şi principalele cerinţe ecologice ale speciilor de carabidae (Coleoptera, Carabidae)

din judeţul Neamţ. Lucrarea prezentă este o sinteză asupra cunoaşterii speciilor de carabide epigee din

ecosistemele Masivului Ceahlău ( gol sub alpin, pădurea de conifere, pădurea de foioase ), Pădurea de foioase

Gâdinţi şi ecosistemul culturii de porumb judeţul Neamţ. Pentru colectarea materialului s-a folosit metoda

clasică de colectare, câte 12 capcane Barber în stationare.De asemenea, s-a folosit metoda colectării cu mâna pe

bază de efort egal. Alpha diversitatea a variat între 17 şi 19 specii (în cultura de porumb ) şi 18-23 (pădurea de

foioase Gâdinţi). Indicele Shannon a avut valori între 2,35 -3,19 (cultura de porumb ) si 2,60 -3,65 ( pădurea de

foioase Gâdinţi ). Echitabilitatea a avut valori între 54 % şi 78 % ( cultura de porumb ) şi între 62 % şi 80 % (.

pădurea de foioase Gâdinţi). Cenozele de carabide , în ce priveşte principalele cerinţe ecologice, se caraterizează

prin predominarea speciilor cu reproducere în primăvara, mezofile, cu preferinţe pentru biotopul de pădure,

zoofage, distribuite preponderent geografic în Palearctic, vest Palearctic.

Cuvinte cheie: păduri de conifere, foioase, cultură de porumb, diversitate alfa, abundenţă relativă, indice

Shannon, echitabilitate, cerinţe ecologice principale

Introduction

Environment, biotope (substratum and climatic regime) have a determinant

character on the composition and evolution of biocoenoses, the species being linked with

the biotope through their ecological valences.

Neamţ County is located in the central-eastern part of Romania, covering a

surface of 5890 square Km (2.5 % of the Romania’s area). The main relief of the county

are as follows: Mountains (western part of the county), hills and Subcarpathian

Depressions (central part), plateau and low alluvial plains (eastern part). The limits of

altitude of the county range from 169 m (in the Siret’s River meadow) to 1907 m (Toaca

peak,the Ceahlău Mountain). As a consequence, Neamţ County has a rich ecodiversity.

In accordance with the forms of relief of the county, the following climates are differentiated. A mountain climate; a climate of the Subcarpathian areas; a plateau

climate, a plain and river meadow climate at the altitude of 170 m. Soil and vegetation

features, topoclimates, pedoclimates and phytoclimates are differentiated according to the

climate and the specific site. Temperature and humidity as well as their extreme values

have a strong influence on the distribution, development and structure of vegetation and

the fauna of arthropods.

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Mircea Varvara and Fulga Zugravu

The average annual temperature ranges between 2 - 7 C degrees (in the mountain

climate); between 7 and 8 C degrees (in the Subcarpathian climate) and between 7 - 9 C degrees in the plateau climate.

The average annual precipitation also depends on the relief. It varies over from

1000 litres per square meter in the mountain climate, 600 – 700 in the Subcarpathian

climate, 550-700 in the plateau climate and between 450 to 600 litres in the climate of the

plains and river meadows.

Within the ecological conditions of the Neamţ County, results on the ecological

aspects concerning the epigeic fauna of carabidae were published by: Varvara and Brudea

(1999), Varvara and Popescu (1999), Varvara and Zugravu (2004). Mândru and

collaborators (1979) published a paper with faunistic character on the fauna of the

Ceahlău Massif.

The purpose of this paper is to present a synthesis on the alpha diversity of

epigeic ground beetles, the variation of their relative abundance, the Shannon index and evenness, and to have a general view on the main ecological requirements at the level of

individuals and coenoses.of Carabidae.

Material and Methods

Time and places of collection. The material of ground beetles was collected

from several ecosystems: Subalpine zone; coniferous and deciduous forests; agricultural

crops.Thus,from the Subalpine plateau Dochia, 1600 metres altitude (1992, 1994, 1995),

from the Ceahlău Massif: coniferous forests, and mixed beech forest, altitude 800 metres,

sites: Izvorul Muntelui and Durău (1994, 1995, 1996); the coniferous forest from the site

Fântânele, altitude 1400m (1992, 1994, 1995, 1998); the beech forest from the site Dealul

Frasinului, altitude 600 m. (1994, 1995); the spruce fir forest from the site Potoci (1994, 1995); the deciduous forest from Gâdinţi, altitude 190 metres (1991, 2000,2001);the

maize crops from Târgul Neamţ (1998 ) and Săbăoani (1999).

Collecting method. The soil pitfall traps method is the most used for the purpose

of faunistic, taxonomic and ecological samplings because they function continuously a

delimited period of time, and the pitfall traps can be used simultaneously in several

stations.

The pitfalls were used with preserving liquid and protection from precipitation:

12 pitfalls were used in each site. In this way, the collection of material had a statistic,

objective basis. The pitfalls were functional from May to September. The collecting of the

ground beetles was made once a month.

In the Ceahlău Massif with its varied ecosystems, the method of hand collecting

was used on the basis of equal effort, two –three hours for a person at the site of the ecosystem. The material was searched for under stones (Dochia Plateau), the bark of the

fallen trees, and in the litter (Durău, Fântânele).

At the Izvorul Muntelui, 30 pitfall traps were used for five days in the first

decade of the month of July (1994, 1995, 1996).

In the Gâdinţi forest and Săbăoani and Târgul Neamţ crops in each established

site, 12 pitfall traps were used. In fact, we used as pitfalls, canisters of 800 millilitres – 1

litre capacity , 12 cm in diameter and 10 cm in height. The pitfalls were placed in a

relevant surface for the respective ecosystem, arranged on three rows, each row containing

four soil pitfalls. The distance between rows and pitfalls was 5-6 metres. As preservation

liquid a solution of 3 % formalin was used, which assured a good preservation of the

material till its sampling. The soil pitfalls were functional uninterruptedly in ecosystems from May to

September each year.

The collectings were made twice a month, to a total of nine collectings each year.

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The nomenclature of the species was used according to Freude et al., 1974.

To characterize the coenoses of ground beetles from those ecosystems mentioned above, referring to reproduction season, preferences for moisture, biotopes, food regime,

geographical distribution, we used our personal observation in the field and information

from the literature, (Turin et al., 1991; 2003), (Neculiseanu, 2003), (Šustek, 2000). I also

used some information and verifications received from Šustek and Neculiseanu, 2003.

The aim of this paper is to present a synthesis of the confirmed existence of the

species of Carabidae in our researches in the Neamţ County, from a number of

ecosystems, and to characterise the coenoses of ground beetles ecologically (reproduction

period, preference for moisture, biotopes, food regime and geographical distribution).

Results

Our data are expressed in tables and histograms.

Table 1. Relative abundance of the species of carabids in some ecosystems from Neamţ County and

the presence of the other species marked with +.

Name of species 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

1 Cicindela germanica (L.) 10 - - - - - - 10

2 Calosoma inquisitor (L.) - - - - - + - +

3 Carabus coriaceus ( L.) - - 35 84 123 1 3 246

4 C. variolosus (L.) - - - - - + - +

5 C. glabratus ( Paykull) - - 6 39 18 4 - 67

6 C. ullrichi (Germar) - - 22 2 12 - - 36

7 C. violaceus (Illiger) - 9 - - - 24 1 34

8 C. irregularis (F.) - - - - - 3 - 3

9 C.auronitens escheri

(Palliardi)

- - - - - 26 - 26

10 C. cancellatus (Illiger) - - 70 25 124 - - 219

11 C. granulatus ( L.) - - - - - + - +

12 C.intricatus (L.) - - - - - - + +

13 C. scabriusculus (Oliv.) 237 174 - - - - - 411

14 C. arvensis (Herbst) - - - - 14 2 - 16

15 C. problematicus holdhausi (

Born)

- - - - - 4 1 5

16 C. obsoletus ( Sturm) - - - - - - + +

17 C. convexus (F.) - - 2 36 21 - - 59

18 C. excellens - 78 63 35 50 - - 226

19 C. silvestris (Panzer) - - - - - - + +

20 C. linnei (Panzer) - - - - - 215 - 215

21 Cychrus semigranosus

(Palliardi)

- - - 3 14 5 10 32

22 C. caraboides ( L.) - - - - - 7 - 7

23 Leistus piceus (Frölich) - - - 4 - 1 - 5

24 L.rufomarginatus (Duft). - - 1 - 3 - - 4

25 Nebria gyllenhali (Schönherr)

- - - - - 1 - 1

26 N. brevicollis ( F.) 3 - - 4 - - - 7

27 Notiophilus biguttatus (F.) - - 1 - - 3 2 6

28 N. palustris (Duft.) - - 7 - - - - 7

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29 Clivina fossor ( L.) - 18 - - - - - 18

30 Bembidion lampros (Herbst) - - - - - 3 - 3

31 Bembidion sp. - 118 - - - - - 118

32 Anisodactylus signatus

(Panzer)

20 - - - - - - 20

33 A.binotatus ( F.) - - - - - 2 - 2

34 Metophonus punctatulus

(Duft.)

- - 8 - - - - 8

35 Pseudophonus rufipes ( De Geer)

536 281 3 28 12 3 4 867

36 P.griseus (Panzer) 2 - - - - - - 2

37 Harpalus calceatus (Duft) 5 - - - - - - 5

38 H. aeneus (F.) 11 30 - - - 5 - 46

39 H. distinguendus (Duft.) 163 14 - - - - - 177

40 H. latus ( L.) - - 32 - - 5 - 37

41 Poecilus cupreus ( L.) 26 117 - - - - - 143

42 P. versicolor ( Sturm) 1 - - - - - - 1

43 Trichotichnus laevicollis

(Duft.)

- - - - - 15 - 15

44 Pterostichus aethiops

(Panzer)

- - - - - 5 - 5

45 Pt.foveolatus (Duft.) - - - - - 34 3 37

46 Pt.melanarius( Illig.) 59 188 - 6 3 - - 256

47 Pt.melas( Creutz.) - - 5 17 9 - - 31

48 Pt. diligens (Sturm) - - - - - 1 - 1

49 Pt. unctulatus (Duft.) - - - - - 53 - 53

50 Pt.ovoideus (Sturm) - 13 2 - - - 2 17

51 Pt.niger (Schaller) - - - - 1 4 12 17

52 Pt. pilosus (Host) - - - - - 15 - 15

53 Pt.oblongopunctatus (F.) - - 19 - - 21 - 40

54 Stomis pumicatus (Panzer) - - 1 - - - - 1

55 Molops piceus (Panzer) - - 86 52 82 2 26 222

56 Abax schüppeli ( Palliardi) - - - - - - 13 13

57 A.parallelepipedus( Pil. –

Mitt)

- - 37 59 64 21 122 303

58 A. carinatus ( Duft.) - - 1 16 30 - - 47

59 A.parallelus (Duft.) - - 34 13 50 10 85 192

60 Calathus fuscipes (Goeze) 37 29 - - - - 3 69

61 C. ambiguus (Paykull) - 2 - - - - - 2

62 C.micropterus( Duft.) - - - - - 35 - 35

63 C. melanocephalus (L.) - - - - - 8 - 8

64 Dolichus halensis (Schaller) 6 9 - - - - - 15

65 Agonum sexpunctatum (L.) - - - - - 3 - 3

66 A. nigrum (Dejean) - - - - - 3 - 3

67 A.moestum (Duft.) + +

68 A. dorsalis (Pontoppidan) 4 11 - - - - - 15

69 Amara aulica ( Panzer) 1 - - - - - - 1

70 A. similata (Gyllenhal) 2 - 78 - - - - 80

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71 A. famelica (Zimmermann) - - - - - 2 - 2

72 Amara sp. 6 35 - 4 - - - 45

73 Chlaenius nitidulus

(Schrank)

1 - - - - - - 1

74 Platynus assimilis (Paykull) - - 1 - - 3 - 4

75 Licinus hoffmannseggi

(Panzer)

- - - - - 6 - 6

76 Brachinus crepitans ( L.) - 5 - - - - - 5

77 B. explodens (Duft.) 1 - - - - - - 1

78 Aptinus bombarda ( Illiger) - - 33 505 224 - 17 779

No.of species 20 17 23 18 18 43 15

No. of individuals 1131 1131 547 932 854 555 304

Shannon Index 2.35 3.19 3.65 2.60 3.32

Evenness % 54 78 80 62 79

Legend 1. Maize crop, Săbăoani; 2.Maize crop , Târgul Neamţ; 3. Gâdinţ forest, 1991; 4.Gâdinţ

forest, 2000; 5. Gâdinţ forest, 2001; 6. Ceahlău Mountain;.7 Surroundings of the Potoci Biological Station; 8.Total

α diversity. The numerical value of the alfa diversity is connected to the

conditions in biotope. The values of this kind of diversity range according to the type of

ecosystems. In our context, 17 – 19 species (maize crops, Săbăoani, 1999;Tărgul Neamţ, 1999); 18 –23 species (deciduous forest, Gădinţi , 2001, 1991).

The concrete biological system which carries all hierarchical superior taxonomic

characters is the specimen.

The number of individuals of a species is in correlation with its biomass, the

position in the trophic chains of the trophic levels and the position in the zoological scale.

The number of individuals of insects is huge because they have a small biomass and are

parasited and eaten by several kinds of animal groups.

The notion of relative abundance is used in the scientific research of Ecology.

The relative abundance is the total number of individuals belonging to a species from a

biotope, collected by scientific methods.

The relative abundance of epigeic ground beetles is quite variable due to biological and ecological reasons.The species with high relative abundance in the maize

crops are: Carabus scabriusculusv, Pseudophonus rufipes, Harpalus distinguendus,

Poecilus cupreus . Pterostichus melanarius.

The percentage of species collected in comparison with all the collected

individuals is the dominance of a species. Ecologically, the dominance of a species

expresses the influence of that species in coenosis or biocoenosis by its percentages.

Shannon index. The values of the Shannon index within the maize crops ranged

between 2.35 (Săbăoani) to 3.19 (Târgul Neamţ). For the deciduous forest from Gâdinţi,

the Shannon index ranged between 2.60 (Gâdinţi, 2000) to 3.65 (Gâdinţi, 1991) We

mention that the values of this index recorded by us are normal variations of this index,

being known that the normal variation limits of this index are from 1.50 to 3.50.

Evenness. Evenness of a coenosis is the measure which shows how equally the relative abundances of the species are. The values of this index for the maize crops are

between 54 % and 78 %; for the Gâdinţi forest, 62 % and 80 %.

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Table 2. Main ecological requirements of the species of Carabidae in some ecosystems from Neamţ County.

Name of species 1 2 3 4 5

1 Cicindela germanica Sp M St,Cr. Z Wp

2 Calosoma inquisitor Sp M F Z E

3 Carabus coriaceus A M F Z E

4 C. variolosus Sp H F Z E

5 C. glabratus A M F Z Es

6 C. ullrichi Sp M F Z CE

7 C. violaceus A M F Z Wp

8 C. irregularis Sp M F Z E

9 C.auronitens escheri Sp M F Z Carp

10 C. cancellatus Sp M F,Cr Z Pa

11 C. granulatus Sp M-H F,Ols Z Pa

12 C. intricatus Sp M F Z E

13 C. scabriusculus Sp M St,Cr Z EstE

14 C. arvensis Sp M F Z Pa

15 C. problematicus S M Suba Z Carp

16 C. obsoletus Sp M F Z Md

17 C. convexus Sp M F Z Pa

18 C. excellens Sp M F,Cr Z EstE

19 C. silvestris Sp M F Z CE

20 C. linnei S M F Z E

21 Cychrus semigranosus Sp M F Z SestE

22 C. caraboides Sp M F Z E

23 Leistus piceus A M F Z CE

24 L.rufomarginatus A M-H F Z CE

25 Nebria gyllenhali A M F Z Hl

26 N. brevicollis Sp M F Z Ec

27 Notiophilus biguttatus Sp M Eu Z Pa

28 N. palustris Sp M F Z Wp

29 Clivina fossor Sp M Rip Z Pa

30 Bembidion lampros Sp M Cr Z Hl

31 Anisodactylus signatus Sp M Cr P Pa

32 A.binotatus Sp M St P Wp

33 Metophonus punctatulus A X St P Wp

34 Pseudophonus rufipes A M+X Cr P Wp

35 P. griseus A M-X Cr P Pa

36 Harpalus calceatus A M-X St P Pa

37 H. aeneus Sp M-X Cr P Pa

38 H. distinguendus Sp M St,Cr P Pa

39 H. latus A M F,St P Pa

40 Poecilus cupreus Sp M Cr Z Wp

41 Trichotichnus laevicollis Sp H F Z Md

42 Poecilus versicolor Sp M Cr Z Wp

43 Pterostichus aethiops Sp M F Z E

44 Pt.foveolatus Sp M F Z Es

45 Pt.melanarius Sp M F,St,Cr Z Es

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Name of species 1 2 3 4 5

46 Pt.melas Sp M F Z Em

47 Pt. diligens Sp M Cr Z Es

48 Pt. unctulatus Sp M F Z E

49 Pt.ovoideus Sp M F Z Ec

50 Pt.niger Pl M Eu Z Pa

51 Pt. pilosus S M F Z CE

52 Pt.oblongopunctatus Sp M F Z Pa

53 Stomis pumicatus Sp M F Z Em

54 Molops piceus Sp M F Z E

55 Abax schüppeli Sp M F Z CE

56 A.parallelepipedus Sp M F Z E

57 A. carinatus Sp M F Z E

58 A.parallelus A M F Z E

59 Calathus fuscipes A M Eu Z Wp

60 C. ambiguous A M-X St.Cr Z Wp

61 C. micropterus A M F Z Es

62 C. melanocephalus A,Sp M Eu Z Pa

63 Dolichus halensis A M Cr Z Pa

64 Agonum sexpunctatum Sp M-H F Z Pa

65 A. nigrum Sp H F Z E.as.

66 A. moestum Sp M-H Eu Z Es

67 A. dorsalis Sp M-H Cr Z Wp

68 Amara aulica Sp M Cr P Wp

69 A. similata Sp M F,St P Pa

70 A. famelica Sp M F P Es

71 Chlaenius nitidulus Sp H F,Ri Z Wp

72 Platynus assimilis Sp M-H F Z Pa

73 Licinus hoffmanseggi S H F Z CE

74 Brachinus crepitans Sp M-X F,St Z Wp

75 B. explodens Sp M-X F,St Z Em

76 Aptinus bombarda Sp M F Z CE

Legend 1.= Reproduction season; 2.= Moisture preference ;3.= Biotope preference ; 4.= Food regime ; 5. = Zoogeographical distribution. Sp. = Spring; A. = Autumnal ; S = Summer ; Pl. = Plastic ; M. = Mesophilous ; M-H. = Mesohygrophilous ; M-X. =Mesoxerophilous ; H. = Hygrophilous; F. = Forest ; St. = Steppe ; Eu. = Eurytopic ; Ols. = Open landscape; Cr. = Crops; Rip. = Riparious; Suba.= Subalpine; Z. = Zoophag ; P = Pantophag ; Wp. = West-Palearctic ; Pa. = Palearctic ; E. = European ; Em .= Euromediterranian ; Ec. = Eurocaucasian ; Es.= Eurosiberian ; CE.= Central European ; EstE. = East- European; SestE. = South-East-European; E.as. = Euro-asiatic; Hl. = Holarctic, Carp.=

Carpathian

Table 3. Reproduction seasons of the ground beetles in some ecosystems from Neamţ County.

1 2 3 4 5 6

No.species 54 4 16 1 1 76

% of total 71.05 5.26 21.05 1.32 1.32 100.00 1 = Spring; 2 = Summer; 3 = Autumnal; 4 = Autumnal-Spring; 5 = Plastic; 6 = Total species

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71.05

5.26

21.05

1.32 1.32

1 2 3 4 5

Figure 1. Percentage representation of the reproduction seasons of the carabids (classes) in some ecosystems from Neamţ County. (Legend in Tab. 3).

Table 4. Moisture preferences of the species of Carabidae in some ecosystems from Neamţ County.

1 2 3 4 5 6

No. of species 5 57 6 7 1 76

% of total 6.58 75.00 7.89 9.21 1.32 100.00. 1.= Hygrophilous; 2.= Mesophilous ; 3.= Mesohygrophilous; 4. = Meso-xerophilous;5.= Xerophilous; 6 =Total species

6.58

75

7.89 9.21 1.32

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

%

1 2 3 4 5

Figure 2. Percentage representation of the moisture preferences of the ground beetles in some

ecosystems from Neamţ County (Legend in Table no 4).

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Table 5. Biotope preferences of the species of ground beetles in some ecosystems from Neamţ County.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

No.species 41 4 4 1 1 11 3 4 1 1 5 76

% of total 53.95 5.26 5.26 1.32 1.32 14.47 3.95 5.26 1.32 1.32 6.58 100.00

1.= Forest; 2.= Forest,steppe; 3.= Forest, crops; 4.= Forest, open land scape,5.= Forest, ripicolous; 6. = Crops; 7.= Steppe ; 8. = Steppe, crops ; 9.= subalpine plateau ; 10.= Ripicolous; 11. = Euritopic .12 = Total species

53.95

5.26 5.26 1.32 1.32

14.47

3.95 5.26 1.32 1.32 6.58

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Figure 3. Percentage representation of the biotope preferences of the species of carabids in some

ecosystems from Neamţ County (Legend in Tab. 5).

Table 6. The trophic regime of the species of Carabidae in some ecosystems from Neamţ County.

1 2 3

No. species 64 12 76

% total 84.21 15.79 100.00 1. = Zoophags; 2.= Pantophags; 3.= Total species

84.21

15.79

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

%

1 2

Figure 4. General trophic regime of the species of Carabidae in some ecosystems from Neamţ

County (Legend in Tab. 6).

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Table 7. Numerical and percentage Geographical distribution of the species of Carabidae in some ecosystems from Neamţ County.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 No.species 16 19 2 13 8 2 5 7 2 1 2 1

% of total 21.05 25.00 2.63 17.11 10.53 2.63 6.58 9.21 2.63 1.32 2.63 1.32

1. Westpalearctic; 2. Palearctic; Holarctic; 4. European; 5. Central-European; 6. East-European; 7. Euromediterranean; 8. Eurosibirian; 9.Eurocaucasian; 10. South-East-European; 11. Carpathian; 12. Euro-asiatic.

21.05

25

2.63

17.11

10.53

2.63

6.58

9.21

2.63 1.32 2.63 1.32

0

5

10

15

20

25

%

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Figure 5. Percentages of the geographical distribution of the species of Carabidae in some

ecosystems from Neamţ County (Legend in Tab. 7).

Discussions

The life of arthropods, as ectothermic organisms in the environment, is

influenced by the ecological factors (abiotic and biotic) in unity with their valences. In

nature, there is unity and interaction; all the ecological phenomena are positively or

negatively correlated. Food, temperature, moisture are variable ecological factors of the

environment influencing the activity, the number and distribution of ground beetles in

their biotope. As we have collected the material quantitatively we could classify the species

into classes as concerns the reproduction period, the preferences for moisture, biotope,

food and geographical distribution which show the spectrum of classes and the general

tendencies. On the basis of the ecological principle, laws and notions and personal

researches in the field, we are able to predict the dominant feature of a spectrum of a

factor (for example, preference for moisture), but in what extent, it depends on the

concrete ecological context.

As for the reproduction season of ground beetles collected from the ecological

conditions of the two main ecosystems (forest and maize crop), the 76 species are grouped

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into five classes: Spring, summer, autumnal, autumnal –spring and plastic species (Tab. 3

and Fig. 1). As expected from other observation, two classes are dominant: Spring and

autumnal species. Thus, 54 (71.05 %) species of those 76 are spring species, and 16

species (21.05 %) are autumnal species. In Suceava County, 70 % of species (in forests)

and 71 % (in agroecosystems) have the reproduction period in spring (Varvara, 2006).

The second dominant class is the class of autumnal species: 16 species (21.05 %)

have the reproduction season in autumn. These findings are the result of the natural

selection, and the interaction of ecological factors.

As concerns the moisture requirements, we have grouped the species into five

classes:Hygrophilous, hygromesophilous, mesophilous, mesoxerophilous and xerophilous

species.( Tab. 4 and Fig. 2). The most dominant class is the class of mesophilous species,

in percentage of 75 % (57 species).The mesophilous species of Carabidae are also

dominant in the ecosystems of Suceava County, but in other proportion ( Varvara, 2006). Referring to preferred biotopes (Tab. 5, Fig. 3), the spectrum of the preferred

biotopes of the species collected is wider. According to our material, we have classified

the species into 11 classes. The forest species are well represented: 41 species (53.95%)

live in forest ecosystems. After the forest species, the crop species are also dominant, that

is, 11 species (14.47 %).The euritopic species have a percentage of 6.58 %.The other eight

groups of species had percentages under six per cent. The samples collected from the two

main ecosystems explain the predominance of the forest and crop species. The presence of

the other eight groups is explained by the fact that the biotope is not uniform because of

the microrelief and vegetation .In the same biotope live both species with many

individuals (eudominant, dominant and subdominant) and species with few

individuals(recedent and subrecedent). In the Republic of Moldavia, Neculiseanu (2003, p. 88) has classified the fauna

of Carabidae, according to food, into six groups: zoophags, phytophags, mixozoophags

,mixophytophags, parasitoids, mixozoophagous parasitoids.

We classified our material into two groups: Zoophagous and pantophagous

species. The zoophagous species are dominant followed by the pantophagous species. Of

those 76 species, 64 species (84.21 %) are zoophagous species. In the Republic of

Moldavia Neculiseanu (2003) shows that the zoophagous species are predominant. This

fact is confirmed by our present research and others (Varvara, 2004, 2006).

As concerns the geographical distribution of the species of Carabidae found by

us within the Neamţ County, the results are presented in Tab. 7 and Fig. 5. The species of

ground beetles collected by us belong to 11 zoogeographical regions: 19 species (25.00

%) are Palearctic, 16 species (21.05%) are Westpalearctic, 8 species (10.53 %) are Central-European, 7 species (9.21 %) are Eurosibirean, and five species (6.58 %) are

Euromediterranean. Other four groups of species (Holarctic, East-European,

Eurocaucasian, Carpathian) have low percentage, 2.63 % each. In his work (Neculiseanu,

2003, p. 91) the author drew the conclusion that in the Republic of Moldavia, the fauna of

carabidae is predominantly formed of Eurosibirean, European, Palearctic,

Euromediterranean, Westpalearctic and Mediterranean species.

Conclusions

Alpha diversity of epigeic ground beetles in Neamţ County has ranged between

18 and 23 species in the deciduous forest (Gâdinţi) and 17-19 species in the maize crops.

The Shannon index had values between 2.60 and 3.65 in the deciduous forest (Gâdinţi ) and 2.35-3.19 (maize crops).

Evenness had values between 62 % -80 % (deciduous forest); 54% – 78% (maize

crops)

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71.05 % of the species have their reproduction season in spring and 21.05 % of

species are autumnal ones. 53.95 % of the species are forest species as preferred biotope and 14.47 % of the

species are living in crops

75.00 % of the species are mesophilous

25.00 % of the species are Palaearctic species, 21.05 % are Westpalaearctic

species, 17.11 % are European species and 6.58 % are Euromediterranean species.

Aknowledgements The translation of this text from Romanian into English was made by the author

and checked up by Gheorghiade Antoanela, English teacher. The authors thank for her

help and are pleasantly indebted for her kind attitude.

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DIVERSITY AND THE MAIN ECOLOGICAL REQUIREMENTS OF THE ... · ecosistemele Masivului Ceahlău ( gol sub alpin, pădurea de conifere, pădurea de foioase ), Pădurea de foioase Gâdinţi