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Vertical distribution of earwigs (Dermaptera: Forficulidae) in a temperate lowland forest, based on sampling with a mobile aerial lift platform
Author(s) -
Kirstová Markéta,
Pyszko Petr,
Šipoš Jan,
Drozd Pavel,
Kočárek Petr
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
entomological science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.536
H-Index - 28
eISSN - 1479-8298
pISSN - 1343-8786
DOI - 10.1111/ens.12229
Subject(s) - biology , ecology , stratification (seeds) , abundance (ecology) , temperate climate , floodplain , spatial distribution , geography , agronomy , remote sensing , seed dormancy , germination , dormancy
Although earwigs (Dermaptera) may be important components of ecosystems because of their locally high abundance and omnivory, their vertical distribution among forest strata is poorly understood. This study used a mobile aerial lift platform to survey the spatiotemporal distribution of earwigs along the vertical dimension in a forest. In 2013 and 2014, 57 trees in a lowland floodplain forest were sampled in the southeastern Czech Republic, Central Europe. Earwigs were collected along the complete vertical gradient of the foliage of the trees using square beating sheets and exhaustors. Of the three recorded earwig species ( Apterygida media , Chelidura acanthopygia and Forficula auricularia ), A. media was the most abundant. The distribution of its abundance with the height from ground (in the tree leaf layer) was unimodal, with a peak at 4–10 m, indicating that A. media is arboricolous. The vertical stratification of A. media differed among developmental stages, and in its abundance among tree species. Investigation of insect vertical stratification in forests should be facilitated by the use of a mobile aerial lift platform.