Distribution of High Altitude Insects

Abstract

The peculiarities of distribution of high altitude insects, with special reference to the Alps and other principal European mountains, have been discussed by a number of workers like bäbler (74), franz (368, 369, 370, 378), holdhaus (526, 527, 530, 531, 535), janetschek (565, 566, 567), lindroth (698–702) and others mentioned in the bibliography. mani & santokh (733, 735) have dealt with some of the important aspects of the distribution of high altitude insects from the Himalaya and mani (730) has recently given an outline of the fundamental patterns of distribution of insects at high altitudes. The outstanding peculiarities of the distribution of high altitude insects are closely correlated with the high altitude environment, the high ecological specializations of the insects, the geographical position of the mountain, its orogeny and tectonics, the distribution of the high altitude plants of the mountain, the Pleistocene glaciations and other complex factors. We shall consider here in broad outline some of the major factors governing the distribution of high altitude insects, the outstanding peculiarities of their vertical and horizontal distributions, the faunal and biogeographical characters and the evolution of high altitude insects in general.