Microhabitat selection and digging activity in the terrestrial isopod Hemilepistus reaumurii as an adaptive response to
- PDF / 1,162,697 Bytes
- 9 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 94 Downloads / 188 Views
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Microhabitat selection and digging activity in the terrestrial isopod Hemilepistus reaumurii as an adaptive response to life in arid environments Anas Ayari 1
&
Chedliya Ghemari 1 & Ahmed Ouni 1 & Karima Nasri-Ammar 1
Received: 17 February 2019 / Accepted: 4 November 2019 # Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences 2019
Abstract Habitat selection of surface dwelling invertebrates represents an adaptation to terrestrial life and may be influenced by biotic and abiotic factors. A field study was conducted monthly to investigate the variation of the biotope and the spatial distribution of Hemilepistus reaumurii burrows in the arid region of Bchachma (Tunisia). Results showed that H. reaumurii preferred to dig burrows mainly inside the south-eastern part of the small dunes (nebkas). The density of nebkas in this region was estimated to be 432 ± 51 nebkas /ha, month on average. The nebkas density showed a monthly fluctuation depending on environmental conditions (e.g. wind direction) and human actions (trampling, car driving, sheep presence). Human activity appeared also to influence the spatial distribution of H. reaumurii burrows. Keywords Desert isopod . Microhabitat choice . Burrow position . Subsocial . Arid lands
Introduction The way through which animals choose their habitat shows a pattern that indicates their adaptation to terrestrial life (Edney 1971). The spatial distribution of soil dwelling animals’ burrows may depend on biotic and abiotic factors such as wind direction, vegetation, substrate composition and meteorological conditions (Linsenmair 2007). Among mammals, the badger Meles meles (Linnaeus, 1758) that colonizes the semi-arid ecosystems of the Mediterranean regions prefers to dig burrows at the level of the dunes which is covered by vegetation (Lara-Romero et al. 2012). The beetle Parastizopus armaticeps (Péringuey, 1892) tends to dig burrow at dune level in the Kalahari Desert (Anne and Rasa 1995). These authors observed that biotic and abiotic factors such as sediment and wind can reduce the number of burrows by filling their entrances. In the supralittoral crustaceans, both Uca spinicarpa (Rathbun, 1900) and Uca longisignalis (Salmon
* Anas Ayari [email protected] 1
Faculty of Sciences of Tunis, Laboratory of Diversity, Management and Conservation of Biological Systems, LR18ES06, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisia
and Atsaides, 1968) crab species tend to dig burrows at the dunes level (Mouton and Felder 1996). These authors suggested that the presence of vegetation and moisture at the level of the dune may explain this trend. In terrestrial isopods, studies on the genus Porcellio showed a correlation between the distribution of xeric species and the cover of stones, except for Porcellio albinus (Budde-Lund, 1885) which lives only on sandy soils (Linsenmair 1984; Warburg et al. 1984; Fraj et al. 2008; Medini-Bouaziz et al. 2016). Recent studies on the distribution of P. albinus in the Zarat region (Gabes, Tunisia) showed that burrows of this species
Data Loading...
