Biodiversity of insects at a microsite, 'Evolution Canyon', Nahal Oren, Mt. Carmel, Israel. Coleoytera: Tenebrionidae

Spatial microscale adaptive divergence was demonstrated in darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae) between the south-facing slope (SFS) and north-facing slope (NFS) at Lower Nahal Oren, Mt. Carmel, Israel. Both slopes share the same geology and macroclimate, but dramatically differ in microclimate. We identified 42 species and 34 genera of darkling beetles from a microsite. Species, genera richness and abundance were significantly higher on the warmer, drier, climatically more fluctuating and biotically more heterogeneous SFS. The data indicate that the species on the more xeric SFS have on average a smaller range than those on the more temperate NFS, as predicted by Rapoport's rule. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limited.