Spatial–temporal composition of Chrysomelidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) communities in southern Brazil

Abstract

We examined the Chrysomelidae communities from representative sites of different ecosystems in Paraná State, Brazil, comparing their spatial and temporal changes. Sampling was undertaken using malaise traps at eight sites during a 2-year period. Chrysomelidae represented 19.1% of all the Coleoptera sampled, with a total of 7611 specimens and 465 species. Galerucinae was the most abundant and richest subfamily. Ponta Grossa was the most abundant site, São José dos Pinhais the richest, Fênix the poorest, Jundiaí do Sul the most uniform, and Antonina had the highest dominance of just a single species. Approximately 79% of the species were represented by fewer than 10 specimens and the 10 most abundant species represented 44.7% of all chrysomelids collected. None of the species were collected at all of the sites, but 325 were unique, reflecting the low similarity among sites. Sites with similar phytophysiognomies were more similar in terms of their Chrysomelidae species compositions. Similarities between years were slightly higher than similarities between sites.

Keywords:

• Alticini
• abundance
• diversity
• Neotropical region
• richness

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Dr R.C. Marinoni (Departamento de Zoologia – Universidade Federal do Paraná, in memoriam) for making the material available; Dr L.A. Moura (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul), Dr A.S. Konstantinov and Dr C.L. Staines (National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution) and F.R. Fernandes (Museu de Zoologia da USP) for identifying part of the material; and the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for the fellowships. This work represents contribution number 1857 of Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brasil.