Epigeic and soil carabid fauna (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in relation to habitat differentiation of an insulated semi-natural habitat in Western Poland

The carabid fauna of a 0.6 ha large semi-natural habitat peninsula in an agricultural landscape was studies using pitfall traps and traps for collecting carabids in the soil. Five characteristic habitat types of the study area (one edge of an ephemeral pond, two different grass sites and two different woody sites) were chosen for inventory and their environmental characteristics were determined by phytosociological surveys. Altogether, 648 individuals from 53 species were collected. In the traps specific for collection of carabids in the soil some species were collected, which are not known for cave-digging behavior. The results of the study showed that the diversification in habitat types and their environmental characteristics are important for the species diversity in the area. The study area was also assumed to play an important refugee function on the landscape scale, for example as overwintering habitat for arthropods or in enriching species diversity in the agricultural landscape.