Resumen

PEREZ-HERNANDEZ, Cisteil Xinum  y  ZARAGOZA-CABALLERO, Santiago. Alpha and beta diversity of Cantharidae (Coleoptera) in the tropical dry forest of the Mexican Pacific slope. Rev. Mex. Biodiv. [online]. 2015, vol.86, n.3, pp.771-781. ISSN 2007-8706.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmb.2015.07.001.

An analysis of alpha and beta diversity between 7 assemblages of Cantharidae (Coleoptera) associated to the tropical dry forest (TDF) in the Mexican Pacific Slope is presented, as a first approximation to the study of insect diversity patterns in this type of vegetation. We explored beta diversity (βcc) and its 2 components: species replacement (β-3) and species richness differences (βrich). Relationships between beta diversity and different environmental parameters (precipitation, temperature, seasonality, altitude, latitude and geographic distances) were analyzed as well. We examined 4,063 individuals, 10 genera and 70 species of cantharids; 59% of species were exclusive to each locality. The genus Plectonotum and 11 species are new reports for the country, and other 15 are new state reports. We found high beta diversity between the 7 assemblages, with 88% of mean total dissimilarity, mainly explained by the replacement (β-3) component. Species replacement was correlated with geographic distance between assemblages and no other factor seems to influence beta diversity of Cantharidae from the TDF. The latitudinal or altitudinal pattern was not observed. We suggest that Cantharidae diversity could be determined by the floristic diversity or the biogeographic history of the TDF they inhabit.

Palabras llave : Coleoptera; Species replacement; Richness differences.