The ground beetle tribe Platynini Bonelli, 1810 (Coleoptera, Carabidae) in the southern Levant: dichotomous and interactive identification tools, ecological traits, and distribution.

Thorsten Assmann,Kilian Schmidt,Claudia Drees,Ariel-Leib-Leonid Friedman,Ingmar Harry,Constantin Schmidt,Estève Boutaud,Fares Khoury,David W Wrase,Eylon Orbach,Jörn Buse,Pascale Zumstein,Ittai Renan

doi:10.3897/zookeys.1044.62615

Abstract

The carabids of the tribe Platynini from the southern Levant (Egypt: Sinai Peninsula, Israel, Jordan) and adjacent regions of Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia are reviewed in terms of species taxonomy, ecological, distributional traits, and conservation biology. In addition to a classical dichotomous identification key to the 14 species of the region, identification tools are made freely available via the Xper3 knowledge database “Platynini, southern Levant”. Besides an interactive identification key, a matrix with character states for the species and single access identification keys are available. A database including all available records from the southern Levant is also provided. First faunistic records are recorded for Anchomenusdorsalisinfuscatus from Sinai (Egypt), Olisthopusfuscatus from Lebanon and Iraq, and for O.glabricollis from Iraq. Threatened species are discussed, also with regard to the reasons of their decline. The majority of species lives in wetlands, especially on the shore of winter ponds and streams, which have been extremely degraded in the last decades.

Highlights

The Platynini, a tribe of ground beetles, are widespread in the southern Levant
We present these taxonomic tools in two forms: a “classical” dichotomous key and an interactive key with further identification tools like character matrices
Following the database and our literature survey, a total of 13 species occurs in the southern Levant, and one additional species may occur in Northwest Syria

Summary

Introduction

The Platynini, a tribe of ground beetles, are widespread in the southern Levant. The taxonomy of some species and subspecies, including new descriptions and synonyms, has been clarified just in the last two decades (Schmidt and Liebherr 2009; Schmidt 2014). From an ecological and conservation biological point of view, this tribe is important, as most taxa prefer habitats with high ground water tables. Such habitats are in sharp decline in the southern Levant due to human impacts. Expansion of structures and intensified land-use over the last few decades led to an effective loss of land that could serve as habitat for plant and animal species (Bittner and Sofer 2013). For many Platynini species with a preference for riparian habitats, this habitat loss was achieved by drainages, channeling of streams, and by water withdrawal from streams for drinking water and agricultural uses. Because the Platynini include taxa that are exclusive to this region, a responsibility arises for the worldwide conservation of the given taxa

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