Habitat heterogeneity and altitudinal gradients in relation to beetle diversity in South Sinai, Egypt

Abstract

Using pitfall traps, ground-dwelling beetles (Coleoptera) were sampled in a nested design from three different localities in the mountainous arid ecosystem of South Sinai at low, middle and high altitudes. Each locality was represented by three different 20x20-m sites, and each site had twenty individual traps distributed systematically. Habitat type and altitude were clearly different among the three localities and to a less extent within localities. Species diversity varied spatially and temporally among the different localities and sometimes within localities. Altitude was positively correlated with beetle species diversity, and habitat heterogeneity within a locality may also play a role in influencing species diversity. The different localities had distinct and characteristic groups of species responding to altitude and habitat characteristics.


KEY WORDS: Coleoptera, diversity, habitat heterogeneity, altitude, Sinai, Egypt.


Egyptian Journal of Biology Vol.3(2) 2001: 137-146