Methods of laboratory maintenance of Pterostichus melanarius (Coleoptera, Carabidae) when studying its diet under different conditions
Abstract
We analyzed the methods of organizing studies of nutrition biology of Pterostichus ( Morphnosoma ) melanarius ( Illiger , 1798), one of the commonest and most numerous species of the family Carabidae in forests and meadows of the Palearctic ec o systems. We considered the features of the maintenance of ground beetle imagoes under different conditions of laboratory expe r iments, noting the advantages and disadvantages. The existing methods of holding litter invertebrates used in studies were an a lyzed on the example of studying the trophic relations of P. melanarius . During a study of the range of diet and potential trophic niche of a zoophage , conducted in the absence of choice of invertebrates, it is practical to use glass Petri dishes, with sterilized moistened sand serving as a substrate. Alternatively, various types of disposable cups can be used, where ( other than sand or a thin layer of sieved soil ) the substrate can include foliage, moss, and stones from the locations of invertebrate capture. To pr e vent the invertebrates from escaping the containers, fine-mesh mosquito netting should be used, fixated with a rubber band. At the same time, determining the trophic preferences of ground beetles and the criteria by which they choose prey in the wild while having free choice of potential prey items (realized trophic niche) requires the use of plastic containers (improvised insectariums) with an optimal size of 30 × 20 cm. A fragment of trophic network is mimicked, with elements of the soil-litter mesofauna and forest litter (foliage, moss, dead tree bark) from the examined sites. The insectariums are closed with plastic covers with air holes covered with mosquito netting. Each day, all the invertebrates in the insectariums are counted to register the number of all ind i viduals consumed by the studied ground beetle. Trophic preferences established during the modeling of trophic network should be verified by visual monitoring of relatively small plastic containers, the bottom of which is covered by a thin layer of moist sand. The primary data yielded during the study should be statistically processed by means of factorial, cluster, and correlation analyzes.References
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