Diversity and Biogeography of Subterranean Guano Arthropod Communities of the Flinders Ranges, South Australia

摘要

This study documents the arthropod diversity and ecology of guano-associated species in 12 caves and mines of the Flinders Ranges, South Australia. Twenty two species from 12 orders and two classes are recorded. This represents a five-fold increase in species richness across the region from previously published and unpublished records. Eregunda Mine and Weetootla Gorge Mine 2 were the most diverse with five and six species recorded respectively. Specious groups included the tenebrionid beetle genus Brises and the emesine reduviid bug genus Armstrongula. Guano communities in the Flinders Ranges contain species in common with the Nullarbor Plain to the west and isolated arid karst areas to the north. There are few affinities with species found in the moist coastal regions of south-eastern Australia.