Abstract
In this paper we report on ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) collected from the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and Hanford National Monument (together the Hanford Site), which is located in south-central Washington State. The Site is a relatively undisturbed relict of the shrub-steppe habitat present throughout much of the western Columbia Basin before the westward expansion of the United States. Species, localities, months of capture, and capture method are reported for field work conducted between 1994 and 2002. Most species were collected using pitfall traps, although other capture methods were employed. Trapping results indicate the Hanford Site supports a diverse ground beetle community, with over 90% of the 92 species captured native to North America. Four species collected during the study period are newly recorded for Washington State: Bembidion diligens Casey, Calosoma obsoletum Say, Pseudaptinus rufulus (LeConte), and Stenolophus lineola (Fabricius). Based on these data, the Site maintains a diverse ground beetle fauna and, due to its size and diversity of habitats, is an important repository of shrub-steppe biodiversity.
Highlights
Incidental conservation on government-managed land has become an important component of biodiversity conservation in the United States, on defense-related properties (Boice 2006, Stein et al 2008)
This paper presents a list of ground beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae, including Cicindelinae) collected on the Site between 1994 and 2002, adding distributional, ecological, and phenological information about a beetle family frequently used in ecological and environmental studies (e.g., Rykken et al 1997, Purtauf et al 2004, Prasad and Snyder 2006)
Eighty-six species are native to North America and the region
Summary
Incidental conservation on government-managed land has become an important component of biodiversity conservation in the United States, on defense-related properties (Boice 2006, Stein et al 2008). This includes Department of Energy (DOE) properties, which have protected vast tracts of lands in ecosystems that have otherwise been almost completely modified by human activity. Ecological research and conservation may be the most valuable legacy of the DOE properties (Dale and Parr 1998). Several large DOE holdings are managed as National Environmental Research Parks in recognition of the biodiversity and ecological value of these properties. The Hanford Site in south central Washington State is a prominent example of accidental preservation of a rare ecosystem and subsequent management for its ecological value
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