Vicente M. Ortuño

University of Alcalá | UAH · Department of Life Sciences

In this paper we describe a new type of subterranean habitat associated with dry watercourses in the Eastern Iberian Peninsula, the "Alluvial Mesovoid Shallow Substratum" (alluvial MSS). Historical observations and data from field sampling specially designed to study MSS fauna in the streambeds of temporary watercourses support the description of t...

A new hypogean species of Trechus Clairville, Trechus arrecheai sp. nov., is described from the Iberian Peninsula. It was captured by subterranean pitfall traps in a non-calcareous Superficial Subterranean Habitat from the Moncayo Massif (Zaragoza, Spain). Data on the accompanying fauna are provided and the biogeographical implications of this disc...

Abstract: The family Carabidae is of particular interest not only due to its great specific diversity but also due to the geophilic nature of many of its members, which makes them good bioindicators of soil characteristics. The diversity of the epigean Carabidae is relatively well studied. However, there are no robust data on the presence of these...

A series of Carabidae with the appearance of Orthomus Chaudoir, 1838, collected in the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) of the Sierra de Gádor (Almería, Spain) were studied. The comparative study of the male genitalia and other anatomical features confirms that they are a new species and new genus. Both taxa are described and placed within the phy...

The aim of this work was to demonstrate that the Leistus (Leistus) constrictus Schaufuss 1862 populations from Sierra de Ayllón belong to a new sibling species of the true L. (L.) constrictus from Sierra de Guadarrama. We describe Leistus (Leistus) elpis sp. nov. The species were separated by the study of external morphology of qualitative characte...

The opilionological fauna of the province of Alicante is poorly studied. The 13 contributions that have described or listed any species for this province result in a catalogue of eight species: Dicranolasma soerensenii Thorell, 1876, Trogulus aff. lusitanicus Giltay, 1931, Anelasmocephalus ortunioi Prieto & Las Heras, 2020, Calathocratus zaragozai...

Presentación del monográfico Biodiversidad de los ecosistemas subterráneos

Este trabajo presenta los resultados sobre biodiversidad de la clase Collembola, obtenidos a partir de un muestreo intensivo, en el Parque Nacional de la Sierra de Guadarrama, de lo que conocemos como medio subterráneo superficial (Mesovoid Shallow Substratum, o MSS) generado por depósitos coluviales. Para ello se utilizaron dispositivos de muestre...

Típicamente, cuando se habla del ecosistema subterráneo, la mayoría de la gente piensa en cuevas y en animales con llamativas adaptaciones morfológicas. Sin embargo, existen otros hábitats subterráneos a parte de las cuevas. El medio subterráneo superficial (MSS) es uno de esos hábitats, con las características ambientales típicas de un medio subte...

Sexual dimorphism in Dyschiriini (Coleoptera, Carabidae) consists of the presence of an autapomorphic sensory area in apical palpomeres of males, here named as Male Palpi Sensory Area (MPSA). In this work, microstructure of palpi, with focus on MPSA, is characterized and formally described using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Interspecific var...

The Superficial Subterranean Environment, known as the MSS (Milieu Souterrain Superficiel), was sampled at 15 localities of three main mountain systems in the northern Iberian Peninsula, at different time intervals from 2012 to 2021. A total of 2673 polydesmid individuals (Diplopoda: Polydesmida) were captured, of which 1970 could be identified wit...

In this study, we focused on the diversity and abundance of Carabidae in the Somosierra forest in Madrid, Spain. This forest is atypical for the Mediterranean region due the presence of birch. Collection of 13 monthly samples yielded 29 635 specimens, including 4829 imagos of 21 Carabidae species. The dominant species was west European chorotype of...

The family Carabidae (Adepahaga, Coleoptera) has been studied in the Iberian Peninsula for decades, resulting in a relatively good state of knowledge. However, study effort has been unequal between its taxa. No comprehensive studies have focused on the tribe Dyschiriini (Carabidae, Scaritinae) yet, of which 2 genera and 34 species have been recorde...

Salientes Valley (north of León, Spain) is an area located immediately to the south of the main axis of the Cantabrian Mountains, from which it is relatively isolated due to the erosive processes produced between the headwaters of the Sil and Luna Rivers. This historical-geological fact makes this valley a unique enclave and its biota an interestin...

Dyschiriini (Coleoptera Carabidae) is a tribe of ground beetles that has never received specific attention in the Ibero-Balearic region, resulting in a general lack of taxonomic, ecological and distributional knowledge. In this work, we revise the available bibliography and published data, analyse the origins of the study on each taxon and its prog...

The patchy distribution of the hypogean environment and the adaptations required to thrive in this special habitat have been proposed to constrain the dispersal capacity of hypogean organisms, resulting in processes of diversification even at small geographical scales. Counterintuitively, a recent detailed morphological study on the variability of...

In the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands, Pogonini (Coleoptera, Carabidae) is the least species-rich tribe of Trechinae. Nevertheless, the taxon is relatively poorly studied in this territory, and the available records are mostly published in old and/or faunistic works. The present study provides a taxonomic revision of the 3 genera and 11...

In siliceous landscapes, study of the mesovoid shallow substratum (MSS) provides interesting species records. The Cholevinae Kirby, 1837 are normally found in the forest litter, and they also are a constant element in underground habitats. However, their knowledge is totally lacking in relation to the underground realm of Sierra de Guadarrama Natio...

This work synthesizes the results derived from the research project “Study of the diversity and distribution of animal species in the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum of high mountain areas (Sierra de Guadarrama National Park)” (ref. 1143/2014), funded by the Autonomous Organism of National Parks of Spain. The Mesovoid Shallow Substratum is the hypogean...

Ocys tachysoides (Antoine, 1933) and Ocys harpaloides (Audinet-Serville, 1821) are two close-related species whose distinction was difficult before the publication of some recent works. While O. harpaloides is well known in the Iberian Peninsula, scarce data of O. tachysoides are available (only four records have been published). We hypothesized th...

Several Mogoplistidae specimens collected in the provinces of Alicante and Valencia are studied by pitfall trapping, in the ground surface, and with underground sampling stations (EMS) located in the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS). These samples are assigned to two different species, Mogoplistes brunneus Serville, 1838, with four females collect...

A new record of Nomius pygmaeus (Dejean, 1831) for the Iberian fauna is given, the third after a quarter of a century when the first two citations were provided. The collection conditions of these specimens are consistent with the pyrophilous habits described for this species. Some aspects that may be related to the wide distribution (Holarctic) an...

Megalothorax minimus (Neelidae) and Sphaeridia pumilis (Sminthurididae) had already been identified in surface sampling from Sierra de Guadarrama. In Europe, Sminthurinus gisini (Katiannidae) seems to be associated with environments at specific altitudes, and has little representation in this sampling. Pygmarrhopalites custodum Baquero and Jordana...

The material for this study was obtained after intensive sampling in the colluvial mesovoid shallow substratum, or MSS, of the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park using 33 subterranean sampling devices (SSD). The data were obtained from the first extraction of the traps between May and October of 2015. This paper presents the results for the Entomob...

Two endemic taxa of the Northern Iberian System have been rescued from synonymy using the study of external morphology by means of morphometric analysis and genital anatomy. The causes that possibly led to these two taxa erroneously being identified as synonyms are analysed in this research. In the case of Nebria (Nebria) urbionensis versus Nebria...

Numerosos muestreos realizados por el territorio peninsular, a lo largo de estas tres últimas décadas, han deparado el hallazgo de Leistus (Pogonophorus) puncticeps Fairmaire & Laboulbène, 1854 en áreas geográfi­cas en las que se desconocía su presencia hasta la fecha. Las nuevas citas amplían la distribución ibérica de la especie hacia enclaves me...

In this article we present a comparative study between the three subspecies of Laemostenus (Antisphodrus) cazorlensis (Mateu, 1953) (Coleoptera, Carabidae), a representative carabid of the cave fauna of Jaén and Albacete (southern Spain). The aim of this work was to examine the validity of the characters typically used to distinguish the subspecies...

The determinants of biodiversity patterns in the subterranean habitat called Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) are not well-understood. In this study, thirty-three scree slopes at high altitudes were selected across the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park in central Spain to investigate the effect of ten environmental variables on the abundance and...

The material for this study was obtained after intensive sampling in the colluvial milieu souterrain superficiel (mesovoid shallow substratum, or MSS) of the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park using 33 subterranean sampling devices (SSD). The data were obtained from the first extraction of the traps between May and October of 2015. This paper prese...

First world record of a crustacean (Malacostraca, Bathynellacea) that lives exclusively in groundwater in an unusual habitat, the mesovoid shallow substratum (MSS). The MSS is a terrestrial subterranean medium with high and constant relative humidity. Specimens of the family Parabathynellidae have been found in sampling devices set to collect terre...

Se presentan los primeros resultados de un estudio taxonómico que compara los rasgos distintivos de las tres subespecies de Laemostenus (Antisphodrus) cazorlensis (Mateu, 1953) (Coleoptera: Carabidae), uno de los coleópteros más representativos de la fauna hipogea de las sierras de Cazorla, Segura, y del Calar del Río Mundo (sistema Prebético). Se...

The Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) is a subterranean habitat formed by a network of interstices found just above the deep subterranean domain and immediately beneath the surface. The present study focused on the invertebrate fauna of the MSS in the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park in Spain. The survey of the area revealed three dipteran specie...

The scarce and biased knowledge about the diversity and distribution of Araneae species in the Iberian Peninsula is accentuated in poorly known habitats such as the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS). The aim of this study was to characterize the spiders inventory of the colluvial MSS of the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, and to assess the impo...

The sphaerocerid Crumomyia glacialis (Meigen, 1830) is recorded from the Iberian Peninsula for the first time. The specimens were captured in two Spanish National Parks (Sierra Nevada N. P. and Sierra de Guadarrama N. P.). Most of the specimens (6 out of 7) were captured in the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum by means of subterranean sampling devices (...

In this article we review the Cymindis ehlersi complex, which is regarded to include two subspecies, C. ehlersi ehlersi Putzeys, 1872 and C. ehlersi lelievrei Jeanne, 1985 from the Cantabrian Mountains (Spain). It was found that show such remarkable differences that the latter should be raised to the specific status Cymindis lelievrei Jeanne, 1985...

A new millipede species, Ommatoiulus longicornis n. sp. is described from the subterranean habitat in eastern Spain, and the elongation of its antennae is discussed in relation to the habitat where it dwells. We take the occasion to discuss the elongation of appendages as a troglobiomorphic character in millipedes and shed the light on the various,...

Two new species of the genus Orchesella Templeton, 1836 have been identified following intensive sampling in the Colluvial Milieu Souterrain Superficiel (Mesovoid Shallow Substratum, or MSS) of the Sierra de Guadarrama using Subterranean Sampling Devices (SSD). The data were obtained from the first extraction of the traps between May and October of...

The chordeumatidan fauna of the Iberian Peninsula is far from being well known, but recent efforts are improving that knowledge. Samplings carried out in the Milieu Souterrain Superficiel (also known as the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum) on several screes of the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (central Spain) have led to the discovery of a new spe...

Limodromus emetikos sp. n. (Coleoptera: Carabidae) is described and illustrated from Baltic amber (Eocene). Based on its morphological features, the new species is considered a sister taxon of the extant Holarctic assimilis species group. Furthermore, the specimen described here could represent a case of stress-triggered regurgitation, which would...

Although Iberian subsurface terrestrial habitats have been sampled for a half century, they remain poorly known. During the last five years much more sampling of these subsurface habitats has been made, mainly in scree slopes (also called colluvial Mesovoid Shallow Substratum habitats, MSS) but also in alluvial debris of temporal watercourses (allu...

In this work, the authors gather all the records of Trechus fulvus Dejean, 1831 in the Iberian Peninsula from 1865 to 2015, corresponding to 134 bibliographical references and to 86 UTM coordinate squares of 10 x 10 km. Also, the authors include 103 new records, resulting from numerous samplings in the last year, corresponding to 84 new UTM squares...

A new carabid beetle genus, Balligratus gen. nov., belonging to the tribe Lachnophorini, is described. It is geographically restricted to the equatorial Andes, and ecologically linked to the montane pluvial forest ecosystem, at elevations ranging from 1,200 to 3,600 m. As other carabid lineages that have radiated in such environments, Balligratus g...

Taxonomy, systematics and biology of a new hypogean Trechus (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechini) from the Cantabrian Karst (Cantabria, Spain) We describe a new species of Trechus Clairville, 1806. This species has troglobiomorphic traits, such as anophthalmy (only a small ocular scar with no pigmentation can be distinguished), integument depigmentatio...

The species Paraphaenops breuilianus (Jeannel, 1916) is an Iberian iconic cave beetle with “aphaenopsian” facies, monospecific until now. An extensive field work over the last years allowed the revision of this peculiar genus using the combinations of morphological, molecular and ecological approaches and led to the description of new taxa Paraphae...

Aim Current climate, biotic habitat provision and historical events are known drivers of diversity patterns. However, these three factors are seldom evaluated together. Here, we study the influence of climate, the distribution of deciduous forests and Pleistocene climate changes on the species diversity of Carabus ground beetles in Europe. Locatio...

Ground beetles (Coleoptera: Adephaga: Carabidae) constitute a large, cosmopolitan and highly diverse group within Coleoptera. With more than 34,000 known extant species, it is a group widely studied from taxonomic, systematic and ecological views, as well as broadly used as bioindicators of terrestrial environments. This stage of knowledge contrast...

Millipedes (Diplopoda), with a few notable exceptions, are poor dispersers, showing a very high degree of endemicity, not the least in mountains. The first samplings of the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) of the higher altitudes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains (Baetic System, Southern Spain) have led to the discovery of a high number of millipedes...

Tarsitachys bilobus (Coleoptera, Carabidae) is a fossil species described by Erwin from Baltic amber. Its description was based on only one known specimen, and thus, part of its anatomical structures were unknown as they were poorly preserved in the Holotype. In this paper we complete the description with a second specimen. A new placement among Ta...

Sampling of arthropod fauna by pitfall traps in the cavern 'Sima de San Rafael' in Íllora (Granada, Spain) has revealed a new carabid beetle species, Trechus parapandus n. sp., with remarkable troglobiomorphic characteristics: eyes visible only as scars, depigmentation, and elongation of antennae and legs. In consonance with these characteristics,...

In this study, the invertebrate fauna of a colluvial Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) is Eastern Spain was characterized, and the importance of the MSS as refuge for endemic and rare species was assessed. Ten pitfall traps were buried up to 1 m deep inside multiperforated PVC tubes across a stone debris. Several environmental variables were measur...

A new hypogean Trechus (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechini) from Sierra de Parapanda (Andalucía, España): taxonomy, systematics and biology Sampling of arthropod fauna by pitfall traps in the cavern ‘Sima de San Rafael’ in Íllora (Granada, Spain) has revealed a new carabid beetle species, Trechus parapandus n. sp., with remarkable troglobiomorphic cha...

Complete list of species collected in the colluvial MSS

Abundance in each SSD for species with 10 or more individuals

In this paper a new species of fossil ground-beetle, Coptodera elektra n. sp. (Coleoptera: Carabidae) preserved in a piece of Baltic amber (Eocene) is described and the paleobiology of the species is studied. This new species represents the first known fossil record for the genus, as well as the first record of its presence in Europe.

Systematic sampling of the Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) at several sites in three regions of the Iberian Peninsula has revealed two new and one very poorly known species of the genus Archipolydesmus Attems, 1898. These are the first records of Archipolydesmus in the MSS, although the genus had previously been recorded from several caves in sou...

The troglobiont millipede Typhlopsychrosoma baeticaense (Mauriès, 2013) is recorded in the Mesovoid Shallow Substra-tum (MSS) of two screes in the Aitana and Bernia mountains (Eastern Iberian Peninsula), far away from its known distri-bution area. A detailed Scanning Electron Microscopy iconography provides additional information on gonopod morphol...

New locations of Coletinia maggii (Grassi, 1887) have been discovered in the center of the Iberian Peninsula in different types of subterranean environments, such as a stony layer in the subsoil of an alluvial plain, an alluvial Mesovoid Shallow Substratum or Milieu Souterrain Superficiel (MSS) and a gypsum cave. This is the first record of both an...

The mesovoid shallow substratum (MSS) of two areas in the Moncayo Massif (Zaragoza, Spain) was sampled for a year with subterranean pitfall traps installed at one meter depth in stony debris. Throughout this period, a large contingent of imagoes of Dima assoi Pérez Arcas 1872 (Elateridae) was found; this is a species whose genus is disjunctively di...

Recently, a series of systematized studies of the Milieu Souterrain Superficiel (MSS) are being carried in several enclaves of the Iberian Peninsula, which have entailed the finding of the enigmatic ant Aphaenogaster cardenai Espadaler, 1981, hitherto considered as hypogean, in a mountain range far away from its known distribution area. Its ecologi...

Over the last 40 years, hypogenic karst/caves have become well known and hypogene speleogenesis has been used to explain the formation of some of the largest subterranean maze caves. These hypogenic systems involve confined aquifers with upwards flow, responsible for their karstification. Such spaces begun and could be remain isolated from the surf...

The new hypogean ground beetle, Duvalius abyssimus n. sp., from Krubera-Voronja, world’s deepest cave (Arabika massif, Western Caucasus) is described and illustrated. Diagnostic morphological characters of the imago, male and female genitalia are provided. Its relations with other Duvalius Delarouzée species from the Western Caucasus geographic are...

Duvalius (Duvalius) lencinai Mateu & Ortuño, 2006 (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechini) a hypogean species from the south of the Iberian peninsula. Morphology, new taxonomic placement, systematics and biology.— Duvalius (Duvalius) lencinai Mateu & Ortuño, 2006 was discovered in two new localities in the municipal district of Siles (Jaen, Spain): Sima C...

Sampling of a Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) of a scree in the Guadarrama mountains (Madrid, Spain) revealed a population of crickets of the genus Nemobius Serville. A detailed morphological study revealed that the cricket was a new species, Nemobius interstitialis sp. nov., which is principally characterized by the absence of a tympanum in the...