Impact of land use change on the diversity of scorpions (Arachnida: Scorpions) in the spiny forest of the Motagua river basin
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54495/Rev.Cientifica.v18i1.166Keywords:
land use, diversity, scorpions, arachnid:scorpions, thorny mountain, Motagua riverAbstract
The alpha (local species richness), beta (species turnover between sites), and gamma (species richness across the entire landscape) diversities of scorpions were assessed in the thorn forest of the Motagua River basin, specifically in the area between El Rancho (El Progreso) and Río Hondo (Zacapa). The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of land-use change on species diversity and to determine the degree of influence of the alpha and beta components of diversity on landscape species richness. Between July and August 2008, eight locations in the landscape with varying percentages of land-use change were sampled. Each location was sampled twice during the study. Each sample consisted of a 45-minute walk (two collectors at a time) over each site, using portable ultraviolet light to locate scorpions. Three species belonging to two families and two genera were recorded across the landscape. The species were Centmroides margariTatiis and Centruroides schmidti, family Buthidae, and Diplocentrus sp., family Scorpionidae. All three species were found in the three fragments with the highest percentage of original forest cover, that is, the sites with the lowest percentage of land-use change. In the remaining fragments, one or two species were found. Apparently, land-use change is the variable that best explains the scorpion diversity obtained. The correlation between the two variables produced an r = 0.95 (p < 0.001). On the other hand, landscape species diversity (gamma diversity) is determined more by local species richness (alpha diversity) than by species turnover (beta diversity). Therefore, the original distribution of scorpion species in the thorn forest of the Motagua basin, prior to the fragmentation processes, was homogeneous.
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