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Kotze DJ, Brandmayr P, Casale A, Dauffy-Richard E, Dekoninck W, Koivula MJ, Lövei GL, Mossakowski D, Noordijk J, Paarmann W, Pizzolotto R, Saska P, Schwerk A, Serrano J, Szyszko J, Taboada A, Turin H, Venn S, Vermeulen R, Zetto T. Forty years of carabid beetle research in Europe - from taxonomy, biology, ecology and population studies to bioindication, habitat assessment and conservation. Zookeys 2011; 100:55-148. [PMID: 21738408 PMCID: PMC3131012 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.100.1523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 117] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2011] [Accepted: 03/24/2011] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
'Carabidologists do it all' (Niemelä 1996a) is a phrase with which most European carabidologists are familiar. Indeed, during the last half a century, professional and amateur entomologists have contributed enormously to our understanding of the basic biology of carabid beetles. The success of the field is in no small part due to regular European Carabidologists' Meetings, which started in 1969 in Wijster, the Netherlands, with the 14th meeting again held in the Netherlands in 2009, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the first meeting and 50 years of long-term research in the Dwingelderveld. This paper offers a subjective summary of some of the major developments in carabidology since the 1960s. Taxonomy of the family Carabidae is now reasonably established, and the application of modern taxonomic tools has brought up several surprises like elsewhere in the animal kingdom. Progress has been made on the ultimate and proximate factors of seasonality and timing of reproduction, which only exceptionally show non-seasonality. Triggers can be linked to evolutionary events and plausibly explained by the "taxon cycle" theory. Fairly little is still known about certain feeding preferences, including granivory and ants, as well as unique life history strategies, such as ectoparasitism and predation on higher taxa. The study of carabids has been instrumental in developing metapopulation theory (even if it was termed differently). Dispersal is one of the areas intensively studied, and results show an intricate interaction between walking and flying as the major mechanisms. The ecological study of carabids is still hampered by some unresolved questions about sampling and data evaluation. It is recognised that knowledge is uneven, especially concerning larvae and species in tropical areas. By their abundance and wide distribution, carabid beetles can be useful in population studies, bioindication, conservation biology and landscape ecology. Indeed, 40 years of carabidological research have provided so much data and insights, that among insects - and arguably most other terrestrial organisms - carabid beetles are one of the most worthwhile model groups for biological studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- D. Johan Kotze
- University of Helsinki, Department of Environmental Sciences P.O. Box 65 (Biocenter 3, Viikinkaari 1), FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Pietro Brandmayr
- University of Calabria, Department of Ecology, Ponte Bucci, I-87036 Rende (CS), Italy
| | - Achille Casale
- Università di Sassari, Dipartimento di Zoologia e Genetica Evoluzionistica, Via Muroni 25, I-07100 Sassari, Italy
| | | | - Wouter Dekoninck
- RBINS, Entomology Department, Vautierstraat 29, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Matti J. Koivula
- Finnish Forest Research Institute, PO Box 18, FI-01301 Vantaa, Finland
| | - Gábor L. Lövei
- Aarhus University, Faculty of Sciences & Technology, Flakkebjerg Research Centre, DK-4200 Slagelse, Denmark
| | | | - Jinze Noordijk
- European Invertebrate Survey – Nederland, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands
| | | | - Roberto Pizzolotto
- University of Calabria, Department of Ecology, Ponte Bucci, I-87036 Rende (CS), Italy
| | - Pavel Saska
- Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Department of Ecology, Kamycka 129, CZ-165 21 Prague 6 – Suchdol, Czech Republic
| | - Axel Schwerk
- Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Laboratory of Evaluation and Assessment of Natural Resources, Nowoursynowska street 166, PL-02-787 Warsaw, Poland
| | - José Serrano
- University of Murcia, Zoology and Physical Anthropology, Facultad Veterinaria, Campus Espinardo E-30071 Murcia, Spain
| | - Jan Szyszko
- Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Laboratory of Evaluation and Assessment of Natural Resources, Nowoursynowska street 166, PL-02-787 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Angela Taboada
- University of Leon, Department of Biodiversity & Environmental Management, Area of Ecology, Campus de Vegazana s/n, E-24071 Leon, Spain
| | - Hans Turin
- Loopkeverstichting (SFOC), Esdoorndreef 29, 6871 LK Renkum, The Netherlands
| | - Stephen Venn
- University of Helsinki, Department of Environmental Sciences P.O. Box 65 (Biocenter 3, Viikinkaari 1), FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | | | - Tullia Zetto
- University of Calabria, Department of Ecology, Ponte Bucci, I-87036 Rende (CS), Italy
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