Journal of Insect Conservation

, Volume 21, Issue 4, pp 645–656 | Cite as

Relationship of different feeding groups of true bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) with habitat and landscape features in Pannonic salt grasslands

  • Attila Torma
  • Miklós Bozsó
  • Csaba Tölgyesi
  • Róbert Gallé
ORIGINAL PAPER
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Eastern European grasslands are still inhabited by a rich arthropod fauna, but the drivers and mechanisms influencing their communities have to be understood to ensure their future survival. Heteroptera communities were studied in 20 plot-pairs in Pannonic salt steppe–salt marsh mosaics in Hungary. The effects of vegetation characteristics, landscape diversity and the proportion of surrounding grasslands on the composition, species richness and abundance of different feeding groups of true bugs (carnivores, specialist and generalist herbivores) were examined using ordinations and mixed-effect models. We found distinct herbivorous assemblages corresponding to microtopography-driven differences in water regime and vegetation between steppe and marsh plots, but this pattern was less pronounced in carnivorous assemblages. A higher species richness of true bugs was found in the more diverse steppe vegetation than in the salt marsh vegetation, while the abundance pattern of true bugs was opposite. Landscape diversity had a positive effect on the species richness and abundance of generalist herbivores and carnivores. Our results suggested that generalist herbivores and carnivores appear to drive diversity patterns in the local landscape due to their high dispersal abilities and the broader range of resources they can utilize. Specialist herbivores strongly influence the local insect biomass in relation to the distribution and density of their host plants. The present study highlights the importance of both habitat and landscape diversity for local insect diversity in Pannonic salt grasslands and suggests that the main threats for arthropod diversity are those processes and activities that homogenize these areas.

Keywords

Abundance Carnivores Composition Generalists Herbivores Diversity Specialists 
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Supplementary material

10841_2017_7_MOESM1_ESM.pdf (231 kb)
Supplementary material 1 (PDF 231 KB)
10841_2017_7_MOESM2_ESM.pdf (9 kb)
Supplementary material 2 (PDF 9 KB)

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Copyright information

© Springer International Publishing AG 2017

Authors and Affiliations

  • Attila Torma
    • 1
  • Miklós Bozsó
    • 2
  • Csaba Tölgyesi
    • 1
  • Róbert Gallé
    • 1
  1. 1.Department of EcologyUniversity of SzegedSzegedHungary
  2. 2.Plant Health and Molecular Biology Laboratory, Directorate of Plant Protection, Soil Conservation and Agri-environmentNational Food Chain Safety OfficeBudapestHungary

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