Unexpectedly high among-habitat spider (Araneae) faunal diversity from the Arctic Long-Term Experimental Research (LTER) field station at Toolik Lake, Alaska, United States of America

摘要

A comparison is made between a three-year structured-sampling study that compared spider faunas of two tundra habitats and a single-year unstructured-sampling study, both within the Arctic Long-Term Experimental Research (LTER) field station at ToolikLake, Alaska, United States of America. The three-year study documented 51 species and predicted a total of 60 species for the area. Our one season study documented 39 species, of which 24, or 62%, are not shared by the three-year study, raising the total count for the LTER to 75 species. These findings emphasise limitations of species richness estimation methods and help dispel the perception that Arctic tundras are homogeneous and species poor.