Different Response Patterns of Beetle Communities to Environmental Factors in Ramsar Wetland, West Algeria

Abstract

An ecological study was carried out to estimate and measure the importance of environmental factors on the abundance, diversity and regularity of terrestrial beetle communities in the Ramsar wetland (Dayet El Ferd, Algeria). Samples were collected bimonthly for one year, with peripheral reference to the water point along the two transects. A micro-distribution and ecology have been tackled besides the degree of maturity of the wetland are discussed. On the basis of 432 samples and 12341 depicted diverse specimens, 221 species belonging to the Adephaga and Polyphaga equally, have been identified, grouped in 30 families, 71 subfamilies with a net dominance of Carabidae. Bagous argillaceus (Gyllenhall, 1836), Calomera lunulata (Fabricious, 1741) and Morica favieri (Lucas, 1859) were abundant, accounting for 18% of the global fauna; a large number of rare taxa (= present in at least 10 individuals) were found. The diversity and regularity of these communities generate a positive correlation of great importance according to a certain rate of organic matter present in the soil. Maximum diversity is found at the highest levels, while regularity is mainly found at intermediate levels.