S. Mahunka szerk.: Folia Entomologica Hungarica 58. (Budapest, 1997)

ROVARTANI KÖZLEMÉNYEK LVIII 1997 pp. 73-82 Carabid fauna of the Beregi-síkság and its biogeographical relations (Coleoptera: Carabidae) T. Magura, V. Ködöböcz, B. Tóthmérész, T. Molnár, Z. Elek, G. Szilágyi and G. Hegyessy Carabid fauna of the Beregi-síkság and its biogeographical relations (Coleoptera: Carabidae) Carabid fauna was studied in eight forests of the Beregi-síkság, both in Hungary and in the Ukraine using pitfall traps. 5092 individuals belonging to 54 species were collected. We found three species of which no data have been known from the Great Hungarian Plain so far. Two of them are characteristic of hills and mountains: Carabus intricatus Linnaeus, 1761, Abax parallelus (Duftschmid, 1812) and the third one is a mountainous species: Cychrus caraboides (Linnaeus, 1758). Three other species were also collected, which have been found only in one locality in the Great Hungarian Plain so far. They are: Molopspiceus (Panzer, 1793), a characteristic species of hills and mountains, Carabus arcensis carpathus Born, 1902, a mountainous species and Blethisa multipunctata (Linnaeus, 1758). We pointed out the most remote northwesterly locality of Carabus hampei ormayi Reitter, 1896. Dacian and Carpathian relations of the studied area are supported by the species composition of the carabid fauna. The Carpathian relations are also demonstrated by multivariate methods. INTRODUCTION The Beregi-síkság (plain) is the most humid (630-660 mm annual precipitation) and coolest area of the Great Hungarian Plain. Originally Salicetum triandrae, S. albaefragUis and Fraxino pannonicae-Ulmetum associations were dominant along the rivers. Oak-hornbeam forest (Querco robori-Carpinetum) may be regarded as zonal vegetation type of this area. The Beregi-síkság as a relatively undisturbed, forested marginal area of the Great Hungarian Plain provides refuge for several endangered species of the fauna. Biogeographical feature of the studied plain is rather unique (Varga 1995). Thus, it is very important to survey and observe the biogeographical relations of this area. The Gastropoda fauna has already been studied recently (Deli et al. 1995), but researches on the carabid fauna are rather deficient. Our study was aimed at the research of the carabid fauna of the Beregi-síkság, both in Hungary and in the Ukraine, with special regard to its biogeographical relations. MATERIAL AND METHODS Our research area was located in the Beregi-síkság, which is partly in Hungary and in the Ukraine. Three (1-3) out of the eight studied forests are situated in the Hungarian side of the border while five (4-8) were on the Ukrainian side (see Fig. 1).