O. L. Makarova

Beetles (Coleoptera) in polar deserts of the Severnaya Zemlya Archipelago

In the course of five expeditions to the Severnaya Zemlya Archipelago, four beetle species were found: Micralymma brevilingue (Staphylinidae), Chrysolina subsulcata, Ch. septentrionalis (Chrysomelidae), and Dienerella filum (Latridiidae). The zonal plant communities do not contain beetles at all. All the species found prefer intrazonal habitats, where the snowless season is prolonged. Only M. brevilingue is common enough in various biotopes of the archipelago. All the beetle species found are wingless, rather small, polytopic and have vast distribution areas (D. filum is a cosmopolitan polyzonal species, and the others are semi-circumpolar arctic forms). Obviously, M. brevilingue should be considered as the most cold-tolerant beetle species of the Northern Hemisphere. This is the first report on the coleopteran fauna in the polar desert zone.

The fauna of free-living gamasid mites (Parasitiformes, Mesostigmata) in the northern Taiga: an analysis of the zonal specificity

According to the data of four-year sampling, the territory of the Pinega Reserve (Arkhangelsk Province) is populated by more than 117 gamasid mite species belonging to 18 families. A relative richness of this fauna is obviously associated with intensive karst processes. A number of species (arctic, Siberian, mountainous) is limited to karst localities characterized by low soil temperature and a short vegetation period. When comparing the local Mesostigmata faunas from different regions, it was suggested that only species lists of unspecialized free-leaving forms should be used. Changes in the species richness of separate families and their fraction in the total suborder diversity along the latitudinal gradient from dry steppes to polar deserts are individual, reflecting different ecological potencies. The zone of deciduous forests is characterized by the richest fauna of Mesostigmata as a whole and of the majority of its families. The northern boundaries for the distribution of separate families are outlined. The number of free-leaving species in the families Ascidae, Phytoseiidae, and Zerconidae varies most smoothly along the latitudinal gradient. Even in polar deserts, Ascidae and Phytoseiidae are represented by more than a single species. It is in the taiga that the family Ascidae becomes the most diverse among Mesostigmata. In the tundra zone, this tendency is more pronounced, and in polar deserts this family constitutes 70–83% of species in local faunas, represented mainly by the genus Arctoseius.

Gamasid Mites (Parasitiformes, Mesostigmata) of the European Arctic and Their Distribution Patterns

Analysis has been completed of all the available material on gamasid mites from insular and continental territories of the Barents Sea region. A total of 116 species has been revealed, including 9 new to science. The species Gamasus armatus L. Koch, 1879 is transferred to the genus Gamasodes Oudemans, 1939, thus becoming Gamasodesarmatus (L. Koch, 1879), comb. n. Six species of gamasid mites occur even at the thermal limit in the Northern Hemisphere, on the ice-free grounds of Franz Josef Land (with mid-July temperatures ranging from −1.2°C to +1.6°C). On Svalbard, 25 species have been recorded, as compared to 27 on Novaya Zemlya, 39 on Vaigach Island, 43 on Kolguev Island, 50 in the Pechora Bay, 37 on Kanin Peninsula, and 58 on the Eastern Murman coast. Despite the differences in the quality and quantity of material obtained during 30 years from numerous collectors, a relation between species diversity and summer heat supply has been revealed (linear regression coefficient: 0.816; significance level: 99%). The most diverse families are Ascidae (23 species, including 20 species of Arctoseius), Parasitidae (15, including 6 species of Vulgarogamasus), and Zerconidae (14, including 11 species of Zercon). The species Zercon michaeli Halaškova, 1977, Zercon solenites Haarløv, 1942, Parasitellus papei (Karg, 1985), Parasitellus arcticus (Karg, 1985), and Halolaelaps gerlachi Hirschmann, 1966 have been recorded in Russia for the first time. The species Zercon acanticus Blaszak, 1978, Poecilochirus nordi Davydova, 1971, Euryparasitus tori Davydova, 1970, Gamasellus tundriensis Davydova, 1982, Arctoseius nikolskyi Makarova et Petrova, 1992, and Neoseiulus ellesmerei (Chant et Hansell, 1971) are new to the European list. The specific gamasid mites associated with lemmings or bumble-bees are absent on Franz Josef Land and Svalbard, since both archipelagoes were almost completely glaciated in the Late Pleistocene. An obviously temporary population of a member of the family Macrochelidae, namely, of the dung-compost cosmopolitan species Macrocheles muscaedomesticae (Scopoli, 1772) was first recorded in the High Arctic (Spitsbergen). Distribution ranges of many species, mainly of those of the genus Arctoseius, lie within the Metaarctic (sensu Yurtsev, 1977). High Arctic patterns have been confirmed for Arctoseius tschernovi Makarova, 2000, A. babenkoi Makarova, 2000, A. productus Makarova, 2000, Neoseiulus sp. aff. tibielingmiut (Chant et Hansell, 1971). However, quite a few of the species traditionally considered as “arctic” and inhabiting mainly arctic landscapes in North America and the western Palaearctic, have also been found in the Siberian mountains as far southwards as the Altai-Sayan mountain system: Antennoseius oudemansi (Thor, 1930), Proctolaelaps parvanalis (Thor, 1930), Zerconopsis labradorensis Evans et Hyatt, 1960, Zerconmichaeli, Zercon solenites, etc. Similar arcto-montane patterns have also been revealed for some “mountain” species: Trachytes hirschmanni Hutu, 1973, Syskenozercon kosiri Athias-Henriot, 1976, Veigaia belovae Davydova, 1979, Iphidinychus gaieri (Schweizer, 1961), and Zercon spp. As the climate becomes milder, the total share of arctic and arcto-montane species in the individual regions of the European Arctic gradually drops from 100% (Franz Josef Land) to 12% (Eastern Murman coast).

Two new circumpolar mite species of the genus Arctoseius Thor (Parasitiformes, Mesostigmata, Ascidae)

We describe two new species of Arctoseius, A. sexsetus sp. n. and A. haarlovi sp. n. These descriptions provide additional data on the circumpolar distribution and morphological variation of these species, which were previously presented under the same names by Lindquist (1964) in his unpublished dissertation. The relationships of these species with other circumpolar species that may form a species-group, including the type-species of the genus Arctoseius, A. laterincisus Thor 1930, and its questionable identity are discussed.

The Fauna of Free-Living Mites (Acari) of Greenland

When compiling The Greenland Entomofauna. An Identification Manual of Insects, Spiders and Their Allies (ed. by J. Böcher and N.P. Kristensen), the mite collections kept at the Zoological Museum of the University of Copenhagen were processed. As a result, illustrated keys and a photo atlas of the genera were prepared. An analysis of the type material preserved in the Museum allowed three taxa of Mesostigmata to be synonymized: Vulgarogamasus immanis (Berlese, 1903) = Parasitus fucicola Trägårdh, 1904 syn. n.; Pneumolaelaps groenlandicus (Trägårdh, 1904) = Hypoaspis (Pneumolaelaps) arctos Karg, 1984 syn. n.; Zercon hammerae Sellnick, 1960 = Z. thulium Athias-Henriot, 1980 syn. n. The number of mite species known in Greenland increased from 158 to 290 (59 species were identified only to the generic level). They belong to the orders Parasitiformes (Mesostigmata 63 species, Ixodida 1) and Acariformes (Prostigmata 94, Endeostigmata 5, Oribatida 110, Astigmata 17). The free-living mite fauna in general is characterized by a complete taxonomic structure and a full range of ecological diversity. The Greenland fauna of oribatid mites mainly consists of widespread polyzonal species (70%) while specialized cryobiont (arctic and arctomontane) species are few (4%); the Nearctic species prevail over the European invaders with a ratio of 1.5: 1. On the contrary, the gamasid mite fauna includes only 25% of widespread species; the cryobiont elements comprise up to 45%; the ratio of the species of Nearctic and Palaearctic origin is 1: 4.

A review of gamasid mites (Parasitiformes, Mesostigmata) dwelling in the taiga of the Pechoro-Ilychskii Nature Reserve (northern Cis-Ural Region) with analysis of their assemblages in spruce forests

In the plain taiga of the Pechoro-Ilychskii Nature Reserve, 91 species of gamasid mites have been revealed. Cheiroseius (7 species), Veigaia (6), Arctoseius (5), Dendrolaelaps (5), and Dinychus (4) are the most diverse genera. European (29%), Palaearctic (27%), and Holarctic species (30%) are represented in the fauna by somewhat equal fractions, whereas cosmopolitan and semicosmopolitan species constitute about 14%. Comparison of gamasid assemblages populating certain habitats allowed revealing two distinct groupings, namely, forest and floodplain ones. Forest assemblages are characterized by high population density (220–760 ind./dm2) and by predominance of Parazercon radiatus, Zercon forsslundi, Veigaia nemorensis, Gamasellus montanus, and Trachytes spp. Floodplain assemblages are less abundant (80–130 ind./dm2) and comprise mainly meadow and hydrophilic species (A. cetratus, Cheiroseius spp. Gaeolaelaps spp., and Gamasellodes bicolor). Low diversity of the family Parasitidae (4 species) and structural peculiarities of assemblages dwelling in coniferous forests (namely, the absence of Pergamasinae and significant fractions of Veigaia, Gamesellus, Trachytes, and also of representatives of the family Zerconidae) demonstrate similarities between the mesostigmatan population of this northern European region and that of the Siberian taiga. Solitary records of such Arctic species as Arctoseius ornatus and Zerconopsis labradorensis, and of the hypoarcto-montane species Iphidinychus gaieri within the taiga belt, seem to reflect the instability of range margin. Taking into account the literary data, we recognize a complex of boreal and borealmountain species (Trachytes edleri, Dinychus septentrionalis. D. crassus, Caurozercon duplex, Neozercon smirnovi, Zercon forsslundi, and Z. zelawaiensis) in the Palaearctic fauna. Their habitats, however, are not restricted only to dark coniferous forest along. The structure of gamasid mite assemblages in mesophytic spruce forests of the Palaearctic varies strongly. By contrast to vascular plants, where many species accompany the dark coniferous taiga everywhere, there is not a single mesostigmatic mite species common to all the spruce forests analyzed, ranging from Romania in the west to Sakhalin Island in the east. On the whole, changes in gamasid mite assemblages across the spruce forest belt seem to follow a succession of meridional changes in gamasid faunas regardless of an edificatory spruce species.

Beetles (Insecta, Coleoptera) in the arctic fauna: Communication 1. Faunal composition

Coleoptera, the largest insect order, appears to be subordinate to Diptera in the extent of colonization of the Arctic environment. Beetles comprise about 13% of the insect fauna of the tundra zone, yet in the high latitudes several of their families retain considerable levels of species diversity and play significant cenotic roles. The present communication reviews the circumpolar beetle fauna of the Arctic. Based on original data, literature sources and museum collections, with the use of extrapolations and analogies, the taxonomic and ecological diversity patterns of the suborders, series and families of Coleoptera are distinguished, the latitude-zonal distribution and the northernmost range limits of the species are analyzed, and their adaptations and cenotic relations are characterized.

Gamasid mites (Parasitiformes, Mesostigmata) in nests of passerine birds on the Arctic Seven Islands Archipelago, the Barents Sea

Examination of 31 nests of 6 common passerine bird species collected on the Seven Islands Archipelago (the Barents Sea) revealed 25 species of gamasid mites. Most of them belonged to the widespread free-living species commonly occurring in the neighboring taiga and southern tundra areas. There were practically no true Arctic forms among the gamasids found; by contrast, the local flora consisted almost by half of Arctic and Hypoarctic species. The findings of only one species, Neoseiulus cf. tobon, appear to be restricted to the Arctic, while the range of the rare parthenogenetic Iphidinychus gaieri may be restricted to Hypoarctic and mountainous regions of Eurasia. No bird parasites were recorded. Host specificity of the mite assemblages of the nests was not observed.

True bugs (Heteroptera) from the Arctic Dolgii Island, the Barents sea

Eight species of Heteroptera, including one adventive species (Elasmostethus sp.) and one aquatic species (Callicorixa producta), were found on Dolgii Island (the southern tundra subzone). Among the seven indigenous species, six are Holarctic; the distribution of five species is confined to tundra landscapes, and five species are predators. The phytophagous Chlamydatus acanthioides and Nysius groenlandicus are associated with the most humid and the best drained parts of the inland landscape, respectively. The predatory species of the family Saldidae, Chiloxanthus arcticus, Ch. stellatus, Salda littoralis, and Calacanthia trybomi, show specific patterns of distribution among the biotopes with different levels of humidity and salinity. The biotopic preferences of Chiloxanthus species vary significantly within their ranges. The northward expansion of Heteroptera appears to be limited by the mean July isotherm of +3°C.

Ground Beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae) of the Ola Plateau Highlands, Kolyma Uplands

The ground beetle fauna was studied in 12 biotopes of the tundra belt on Ola Plateau, 130 km NW of Magadan. In all, 16 species were found above timber line (900–1220 m), which is comparable with the diversity in the mountain tundras of the upper reaches of the Kolyma (Berman et al., 1984; Bukhkalo, 1997), but the faunistic similarity of these regions is low (Jaccard’s coefficient 22–29%). Besides the widespread species, a group of ground beetles with limited ranges is present; it includes Carabus kolymensis Lafer, 1989 occurring in the East Siberian mountain tundras, the Siberian-Nearctic, mainly arctic Pterostichus agonus G. Horn, 1880, and the East Siberian Pterostichus eximius A. Mor., 1862. The use of the term “arctic species” in arealogical and ecological studies is discussed.