Ground beetles (Carabidae) in urban habitats of Kaluga City (Russia).

BACKGROUND: Ground beetles (Carabidae, Coleoptera) are one of the most species-rich and well-studied insect families. However, the number of published datasets is disproportionately low against the biodiversity of this group. According to GBIF, only a fifth of the percentage of all published data covers ground beetles. This article describes a sampling-event dataset providing primary data on ground beetles collected in urban and suburban habitats in Kaluga, a typical central Russian city. We surveyed habitats of different land-use types and the extent and intensity of anthropogenic influence: yards, gardens, quarries, small urban woodlands, grasslands and riparian habitats. Carabids were collected by pitfall traps during most of the vegetative season (mostly from late April - early May to at least early October) for 13 seasons between 1994 and 2015. In total, the dataset contains 189 carabid species and 79,091 specimens. The dataset provides information about species composition and abundance, habitat distribution, seasonal and long-term dynamics of carabid beetles in environments of different degrees of urbanisation. NEW INFORMATION: This dataset is the first sampling-event dataset about carabids in various urban habitats published through GBIF.

Ecological data in Darwin Core: the case of earthworm surveys.

BACKGROUND: This sampling-event dataset provides primary data about species diversity, age structure, abundance (in terms of biomass and density) and seasonal activity of earthworms (Lumbricidae). The study was carried out in old-growth broad-leaved and young forests of two protected areas ("Kaluzhskiye Zaseki" Nature Reserve and Ugra National Park) of Kaluga Oblast (Russia). NEW INFORMATION: The published dataset provides new data about earthworm communities in European Russia. We propose a new schema according to Darwin Core for the standardisation of the soil invertebrates survey data.

Communities of ground beetles (Carabidae, Coleoptera) in broad-leaved forests of protected and urban areas of the Kaluga Oblast (European Russia).

BACKGROUND: This sampling-event dataset provides primary data about species diversity, population and seasonal activity of ground beetles (Carabidae, Coleoptera). The study was carried out in broad-leaved forests of protected ("Kaluzhskiye Zaseki" Nature Reserve and Ugra National Park) and urban areas (the Kaluga City) of the Kaluga Oblast. Carabids were collected from April to October during 1995-1998 by pitfall traps. In total, 108,000 adult individuals of the Carabidae family were sampled; 105 species from 38 genera were counted. NEW INFORMATION: This dataset is the first sampling-event dataset about the Carabidae family for the European part of Russia. It provides biodiversity data for new territory (Kaluga Oblast) and contributes to filling gaps in the global biodiversity distribution of the Carabidae family. Part of the data was collected from unique old-growth broad-leaved forests.