Densidad de artrópodos activos en la superficie del suelo de un bosque novedoso de Castilla elastica

Abstract

During the month of June 2008 we collected arthropods active on the surface of the ground in a forest of Castilla elastica located in the northern karst’s Tallonal Reserve in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. In each of 4 plots of 10 m x 10 m we placed three randomly distributed pitfall traps. The traps, which allowed the passage of organisms smaller than 5 mm wide, remained on the field for seven days. The samples collected in the field were taken to the laboratory for subsequent identification and counting of organisms. We found 13 taxa belonging to three classes of arthropods, with an average density of 84.783 ± 13.523 (SE, n = 12) organisms/m2. The density of organisms varied spatially. Coleoptera larvae and adults were the most abundant arthropods with a relative density of 81 percent. The density of arthropods in this study was similar to that reported in lowland forests and dry forests in Puerto Rico and over the forested wetlands in Puerto Rico with the exception of mangroves and the tabonuco forest.

Citation

Rivera Costa, Maria M.; Lugo, Ariel E.; Vázquez, Shalom V. 2008. Densidad de artrópodos activos en la superficie del suelo de un bosque novedoso de Castilla elastica. Acta Científica. 22(1-3): 3-11. .