';!"".~'f1~""'~ .c"' !-.- ~-.""-- '! 1__~~ ~~" X ~ I_--c: \ Species diversity and microsite divergence of insects at "Evolution Canyon", Lower Nahal Oren, Mt. Carmel, Israel (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) by Mark Volkovitsh, Tomáš Pavlíèek, Vladimir Chikatunov and Eviatar Nevo Abstract: Local differencesin species richness and abundance ofbuprestid beetles werestudied at the microsite "Evolution Canyon",Lower Nabal Oren,Mt. Carrnel, Israel, a modelconceived for studyingbiodiversity evolution in a microcosm of life in nature.39 species were collectedat the microsite, andspecies richness was higher on the morearid and microclimatically stressful and variable south-facing slope than on tbe milder, more humid and relatively homogeneous north-facing slope. The interslope differencesin abundance were significant in five species. New larval host plants wereadded for nine species, as well as new data about the regional dis- tribution of buprestid beetles. The resultssupportearlierconclusions in variousgroups of organ- isrnsacross phylogeny. Kurzfassung: lm so genannten "Evolution Canyon" am UnterenNabal Orenam Berg Karmel, Israel,wurdenbei Prachtk~fem (Buprestidae) lokaJe Unterschiede in der Artenvielfalt und in der H~ufigkeit untersucht, als Modell fiir die Evolution der BiodiversitJitauf Ebene eines Mikro- kosmos. An dieser Mikro-LokalitJit wurden 39 Arten festgestellt, und die Artenanzahlwar auf der arideren und stJirkeren mikroklimatischenSchwankungen ausgesetzten Siidseite hober als auf der milderen, feuchteren und relativ homogeneren Nordseite. Die Unterschiede in den H~u- figkeiten der Arten waren zwischenden beiden Gebieten signifikant. Fiir neun Arten werden neue Futterpflanzen der Larvenmitgeteilt,ebenso wie neue Angaben iiber die regionale Verbrei- tung einzelner Arten. Die Ergebnisse bestJitigen friihere Schlussfolgerungen zur Phylogenie ver- schiedener Organismengruppen. Key words: Beetles, Buprestidae, distribution, Evolution Canyon, Israel,Middle East. Introduction This study deals with the testing of local species richnessdivergencepatterns resulting from differential microclimate selection(see NEVO 1995, 1997 for review). The objectives ofthe long-term evolutionary project at the microsite Lower Nahal Oren, Mount Carmel, Israel, known as "Evolution Canyon", are to analyse determinants of biodiversity distribution, evaluate the relative role of stochastic and deterministic factors in evolution, and outline biodiversity evolution in nature in different jfoups of organisms across phylogeny, includ- ing bacteria, fungi, plants and animals (NEVO1995, 1997). An important side-productofthe project is the upgrading of the knowledge ofbiodiversity in Israel and the Near East. The taxa which have been studied hitherto at "Evolution Canyon" are cyanobacteria,soil bacte- ria, algae, fungi, lichens, mosses, vascular plants, invertebrates and vertebrates (NEvO 1995, Zoology in the Middle East 20, 2000: 125-136. ISSN 0939-7140@ Max Kasparek Verlag, Heidelberg