An Assessment Of Beetle Diversity In Four Sites From Hong Kong Based On Three Passive Collecting Methods

Standardization of acquisition methods for collecting insect specimens is the foundation of insect diversity research.The use of active search acquisition methods are constrained by the presence of many interfering factors and poor reproducibility.Passive acquisition methods,represented by Flight Interception Trap(FIT),Malaise Trap(MT)and Pit Fall Trap(PT),have been widely adopted in different scenarios and have gradually become the mainstream of insect diversity research due to their unique advantages.However,there was a lack of systematic research on the features and efficacy of collection by these passive acquisition methods.In this study,Shing Mun,Pat Sin Leng,Ma On Shan and Sai Kung(Hong Kong)was selected as the sample sites(with a total of 13 sampling points in each site)for field survey of about one month(sampling frequency is once two days)using the three passive acquisition methods above for quantitative evaluation of their effectiveness on beetle collection.The results shows:Shing Mun sample site: 6380 beetles were collected belong to 40 families 197 species,4447 beetles belong to 36 families 149 species were collected by FIT,621 beetles belong to24 families 79 species were collected by MT,1312 beetles belong to 17 families 60 species were collected by PT.Pat Sin Leng sample site: 2258 beetles were collected belong to 36 families 284 species,1543 beetles belong to 25 families 188 species were collected by FIT,496 beetles belong to 25 families 111 species were collected by MT,219 beetles belong to 20 families 83 species were collected by PT.Ma On Shan sample site: 3456 beetles were collected belong to 44 families 373 species,2427 beetles belong to 40 families 325 species were collected by FIT,675 beetles belong to 20 families 114 species were collected by MT,354 beetles belong to 17 families 77 species were collected by PT.Sai Kung sample site: 4044 beetles were collected belong to 42 families 359 species,2807 beetles belong to 37 families278 species were collected by FIT,386 beetles belong to 18 families 80 species were collected by MT,851 beetles belong to 23 families 134 species were collected by PT.The beetles in the four sample sites showed high similarity,which was represented by the Shing Mun sample site with the largest number of individuals.In terms of abundance,the number of individuals with 1 was more than that of the three methods,while the dominant species accounted for the majority of the total.In terms of diversity index,FIT is higher than MT and PT.In terms of feeding habits,6 types of feeding beetles were collected by both FIT and PT,and the differences between the two methods were significant.The beetles collected by the three methods were also different in terms of body size.There were significant differences in body length and body width between FIT vs PT and MT vs PT,but there was no significant difference in body size between FIT vs MT.In terms of similarity coefficient,the similarity coefficient between FIT and PT,and between MT and PT are all in the range of0?0.25,showing very little similarity.The similarity coefficient between FIT and MT is in the range of 0.25?0.5,indicating moderate dissimilarity.The results of all the beetles collected by the three methods based on the four sites showed that a total of 16138 beetles belong to 59 families were collected,54 species 11224 beetles were collected by FIT,269 species 2178 beetles were collected by MT,and 257 species 2736 beetles were collected by PT.In terms of diversity index,it was found that FIT>Mt >PT and FIT> Mt >PT in terms of the number of families,species and individuals collected.The results of species accumulation curve showed that the three collection methods had better collection effect.The beetles collected by the three methods are complementary in family order elements.Conclusion: The three kinds of acquisition methods had their own characteristics,Collecting effects complement each other and thus the acquisition method can be selected according to the research goal and scientific problem to be addressed.In addition to beetles,the three kinds of acquisition methods can also be adopted to collect other animals.More sites and fauna could be tested using these three passive acquisition methods which are of great significance to future studies on the assessment of fauna diversity.