New records, detailed distribution and abundance of rove-beetles (Insecta, Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) collected between 1990 and 2015 in Azores (Portugal) with an updated checklist

Paulo A V Borges; Lucas Lamelas-Lopez; Volker Assing; Michael Schülke

doi:10.3897/BDJ.10.e78896

New records, detailed distribution and abundance of rove-beetles (Insecta, Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) collected between 1990 and 2015 in Azores (Portugal) with an updated checklist

Biodivers Data J. 2022 Feb 24:10:e78896. doi: 10.3897/BDJ.10.e78896. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Paulo A V Borges¹, Lucas Lamelas-Lopez¹, Volker Assing², Michael Schülke³

Affiliations

¹ cE3c - Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes / Azorean Biodiversity Group and Universidade dos Açores, Rua Capitão João d'Ávila, São Pedro, 9700-042, Angra do Heroísmo, Azores, Portugal cE3c - Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes / Azorean Biodiversity Group and Universidade dos Açores, Rua Capitão João d'Ávila, São Pedro, 9700-042 Angra do Heroísmo, Azores Portugal.
² Gabelsbergerstraße 2, 30163, Hannover, Germany Gabelsbergerstraße 2, 30163 Hannover Germany.
³ Blankenfelder Straße 99, D-13127, Berlin, Germany Blankenfelder Straße 99, D-13127 Berlin Germany.

Abstract

Background: The dataset we present consists of an inventory compiling all records and knowledge about Staphylinidae (Insecta, Coleoptera) in the Azores and is part of a long-term monitoring performed between 1990 and 2015 in different habitat types of eight islands of the Azores Archipelago. Most samples come from the BALA project (Biodiversity of Arthropods from the Laurisilva of Azores) that sampled native forests in the Azores. Additional sampled habitats include exotic forests, intensive and semi-natural pasturelands, orchards, caves and lava flows. Most of the records (about 96.7%) were collected in standardised sampling campaigns, which included pitfall traps and beating transect protocols. Non-standardised records are based on hand-collecting and sifting, as well as cave, colour and malaise traps.

New information: We provide a long-term inventory of Staphylinidae (Insecta, Coleoptera) collected in the course of several standardised sampling campaigns and recorded with non-standardised methods. We collected a total of 10744 specimens belonging to 69 identified species of Staphylinidae, which represents 51% of the species known from the Azores Archipelago. Four endemic species were sampled, representing 40% of the known Azorean endemic species. From this dataset, seven species are new for the Azores: Aleocharafunebris Wollaston, 1864; Amischaforcipata Mulsant & Rey, 1873; Blediusunicornis (Germar, 1825); Carpelimustroglodytes (Erichson, 1840); Cyphaseminulum (Erichson, 1839); Paraphloeostibagayndahensis (MacLeay, 1871); Tachyporuscaucasicus Kolenati, 1846. We also registered a total of 66 new island records for eight Azorean islands. This contribution continues a series of publications on the distribution and abundance of Azorean arthropods. We also provide an updated list of Azorean rove-beetles (Staphylinidae) that now includes 136 species, ten of them considered Azorean endemics.

Keywords: Azorean native forest; Coleoptera; Staphylinidae; arthropods; biodiversity; dataset; inventory; long term monitoring.

Paulo A. V. Borges, Lucas Lamelas-Lopez, Volker Assing, Michael Schülke.

Grants and funding

“Reservas Florestais dos Açores: Cartografia e Inventariação dos Artrópodes Endémicos dos Açores” (BALA) (Direcção Regional dos Recursos Florestais, project 17.01-080203) (1999-2003); “Agriculture, habitat fragmentation, indicator species and conservation of endemic fauna and flora in the Azores – the 2010 Target” (Direcção Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia, DRCT - Postdoc M112/F/014/2007) (2007-2009); "Predicting extinctions on islands: a multi-scale assessment” (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia- FCT- PTDC/BIA-BEC/100182/2008) (2010-2013); “Understanding biodiversity dynamics in tropical and subtropical islands as an aid to science based conservation action” (ISLANDBIODIV) (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia , FCT/NETBIOME/0003).The database management was funded by FEDER (85%) and by Azorean Public funds (15%) through Operational Program Azores 2020, under the project AZORESBIOPORTAL –PORBIOTA (ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000072).