Abdulrahaman S Alzahrani, Moutaman Ali Kehail, Sara A Almannaa, Areej H Alkhalifa, Abdulaziz M Alqahtani, Mohammed H Altalhi, Hussein H Alkhamis, Abdullah M Alowaifeer, Abdulwahed Fahad Alrefaei
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Each living organism thrives best in a habitat that provides optimal conditions for flourishing, reproduction, and distribution within a certain area. This study aims to investigate the seasonal variation in insect biodiversity across different sites of the King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve (KARR), located between E 45.19-46.57 and N 25.15-27.41, with a focus on assessing biodiversity, density and seasonal variation using active and passive methods, over the period from January to November 2023. A total of 68 sites within the study area were randomly selected for trap placement. The trapped specimens were labeled and transferred to plastic bottles half filled with 70% ethanol and then taken to the laboratory for counting and identification. Identification was based on morphological characteristics and appropriate identification keys, with the assistance of entomological expertise, and a list of local species. Simpson's diversity index (D) was also calculated. The results revealed that, out of 6320 trapped insects, species were identified across six orders: Blattodea (termites), represented by 2 families and 2 species; Coleoptera, comprising 12 families and 38 species, of which 11 belonged to the family Tenebrionidae; Hemiptera, comprising 7 families and 9 species, 3 of which belonged to the family Lygaeidae; Hymenoptera, comprising 5 families and 15 species, 9 of which were from Formicidae; Lepidoptera, comprising 2 families and 3 species; and Orthoptera, comprising 3 families and 7 species, 4 of which were from family Acrididae. Insect biodiversity and abundance were observed to be relatively low during the winter (January-March) and autumn (October-November) seasons, while relatively higher densities were recorded during spring (May) and summer (August-September).
期刊介绍:
Biology (ISSN 2079-7737) is an international, peer-reviewed, quick-refereeing open access journal of Biological Science published by MDPI online. It publishes reviews, research papers and communications in all areas of biology and at the interface of related disciplines. Our aim is to encourage scientists to publish their experimental and theoretical results in as much detail as possible. There is no restriction on the length of the papers. The full experimental details must be provided so that the results can be reproduced. Electronic files regarding the full details of the experimental procedure, if unable to be published in a normal way, can be deposited as supplementary material.