Dispersal of carabid beetles - emergence of distribution patterns

Authored by H Reuter, F Jopp

Date Published: 2005

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2005.02.009

Sponsors: No sponsors listed

Platforms: No platforms listed

Model Documentation: Other Narrative

Model Code URLs: Model code not found

Abstract

Identifying the key processes affecting movement behaviour is essential to understand the high variability of dispersal rates and their influence on population dynamics in most arthropod communities. Biological characteristics of the species, the type and the size of local landscape elements and their spatial arrangements are important for the dispersal of epigeic arthropods. We developed two individual-based models to investigate dispersal activities of ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae). The first model was used for simulation experiments with high numbers of the forest carabid Carabus coriaceus dispersing through heterogeneous habitats. In these experiments the effects of local spatial resistance on movement was varied and the subsequent reaction on the dispersal pattern was measured. The results indicated that local spatial resistance determined the ability of ground beetles to colonise new habitats and had an important impact on the spatial distribution of the population. In a second model, the connectivity of landscape elements, such as hedgerows and stepping stones, was investigated for the forest carabids Abax parallelepipedus and Carabus hortensis. We demonstrated that for Abax parallelepipedus the width of the hedgerows determines the dispersal success. Reproduction success in the local landscape elements was found a key factor: it had to be higher than the potential losses by movements onto suboptimal habitats. With Carabus hortensis, a faster disperser, the simulations illustrated that hedgerows and stepping stones were of less importance. Due to its lower densities and a higher probability to cross large suboptimal areas, stochastic processes gained in importance for dispersal. Linking the individual properties and behavioural reactions to landscape structure facilitated the possibility to understand complex arthropod dispersal processes at the population level. The results indicated the necessity to analyse the dynamics of dispersal processes on broader spatio-temporal scales over several generations. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tags

ecology Movement patterns Model Fragmentation Population-dynamics Landscapes Field Egg-production Abax-ater coleoptera Pitfall traps