Changes in the Carabid Fauna (Coleoptera, Carabidae) of Meadow Steppes during the Past Decades

Basic trends in the structural dynamics of the meadow-steppe carabid fauna over the period from 1970 to 1997 have been analyzed. Data on changes in the abundance and composition of dominant species are reported. Transformation of carabidocenoses is mainly accounted for by an increased humidity of the climate and the related mesophytization of forest–steppe ecosystems.     

Structural Changes in the Carabid Fauna of Forest Ecosystems under a Toxic Impact

Changes in the abundance, species composition, and biomorphological structure of the carabid fauna were studied in birch and fir–spruce forests growing in a zone exposed to emissions from a copper-smelting plant in the Middle Urals. The dynamic density of carabids decreased and their species composition and the ratio of life forms changed along the pollution gradient, but the principle of organization of carabidocenoses and the structure of dominance in them remained undisturbed.     

Carabids in a Spring Wheat Agrocenosis to the South of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Effect of Insecticide Treatment on Their Populations

Species composition, community structure, and seasonal population dynamics of carabids in spring wheat fields were studied in the vicinity of Yekaterinburg. In addition, the effects of crop treatment with the pyrethroid insecticide Decis on carabid populations was analyzed. The results showed that the numbers, species diversity, and the prevalence of certain trophic groups of carabids changed during the season. After the treatment of small areas with Decis, the number of carabids in catches decreased for a short period of time. During the second and third weeks after the treatment, the numbers of carabids increased above the control level. The structural rearrangement of the carabid community was observed in the areas treated with the insecticide.