Study and Notes for the Freshwater Spercheidae, Dryopidae and Heteroceridae (Coleoptera) Fauna of Erzurum Province: A New Record for Türkiye

Abstract

In this study, samples of Dryopidae, Heteroceridae and Spercheidae (Coleoptera) were collected from the shallow areas of lakes, ponds, rivers and small puddles in Erzurum province (Türkiye) between 2015 and 2020 with sieves of 3.15 x 1 mm pore size (mesh size 500 µm). A total of 4 different species were found. Two individuals from Dryops griseus (Erichson, 1847) species; 1 individual from the species Dryops jeanneli Bollow 1938; 2 individuals of Heterocerus fenestratus Thunberg 1784; and 2 individuals of Spercheus emarginatus (Schaller, 1783) species were caught. The collected samples were evaluated based on their morphological and ecological characteristics. While D. griseus was recorded for the first time in Türkiye, D. jeanneli and S. emarginatus are the third examples of species recorded in Türkiye. Additionally, these two species were recorded for the first time in the Eastern Anatolia region. H. fenestratus, collected from the Eastern Anatolia Region by another researcher, was also found during the study. The lateral parameters of the species' aedeagophores collapse from the middle towards the interior. Aedeagophore photographs and distribution data in the country and worldwide are discussed in the article. The average temperature and chemical parameters (electrical conductivity, pH, total nitrogen, dissolved oxygen, total phosphorus and water temperature) of the water bodies where the four different species were collected were found to be close to each other. To comprehend the life cycle, ecological data, along with morphological descriptions and vegetation information for each species are described.