Cicindelidae (coleoptera) do Pará: taxonomia, zoogeografia e ecologia

Abstract

The tiger beetles, as the cicindelids are also known, are a family of coleopterans with about 2,300 species. Brazil is home to 203 species, 125 of which are endemic. The group is usually classified in its own family (Cicindelidae) or in the subfamily Cicindelinae (Carabidae). They are characterized by large eyes, long legs, large mandibles for prey capture, and the slight equality of widths of the thorax and pronotum, the elytra visibly surpassing the apex of the abdomen. They are predators and their capture, even in open areas, is difficult, as they have great agility on the ground and in the air. This work aims to characterize the composition and diversity of the Cicindelidae family in the Brazilian Amazon, based on the entomological collection of the Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi (MPEG), as well as the construction of the digital collection. Thus, the following procedures were carried out: numbering of individuals in the collection, identification of species, photographs and digitization of data. We found 827 specimens representing nine genera and 60 species. These were organized and labelled in the collection room. Their data were recorded in an electronic spreadsheet containing information such as: name of the collector, locality of collection, date of collection, species name, specimen number and ecological notes. In addition, an image bank of the species was built to facilitate the identification of specimens. The localities and other data will be analyzed in a geographic information system (GIS), in order to enable faster and more dynamic future research of this family, often pointed out as a bio-indicator group of biological diversity.