Corresponding author: Robert L. Davidson (
Academic editor: Terry Erwin
For young carabidologists growing up in New England,
Dorsal habitus of male
Lindroth himself, uncharacteristically, did not recognize that this was, in fact, a European species. This is puzzling, as Lindroth was a
Eighty-three years after its description, at last the penny tumbled.
In October, 2007, one hundred ten years on from Hayward’s description, Davidson and Rykken converged on Burlington, Vermont, to meet in Ross Bell’s lab to identify the latest round of carabids from the Boston Harbor Islands ATBI. This project is a six-year collaborative effort between the MCZ and the National Park Service to catalogue arthropod diversity in Boston Harbor Islands national park area. There had been some interesting material up to that point, but nothing compared with the excitement that ensued when the first specimen of
We realize that it cannot be proven that these populations are descended from the same introduction event(s) that produced Hayward’s specimens, and not from subsequent introduction; but it is the most likely scenario. Given their elusive nature even in their homelands; their very specialized habitat and narrow habitat zone; their tiny size, winglessness and slow dispersal rate; and the paucity of collectors, it is likely they have been here all along, introduced sometime probably well before 1897.
The species is closely related to two other species in the Mediterranean, and perhaps more distantly to two species in the American west (California and Utah). Serendipitously, in late 2010, when we were already set in our thoughts about habitat and behavior of
See
The following acronyms are used:
Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA.
Canadian National Collection, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
David Maddison Collection, currently at OSU.
Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts USA.
Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon USA.
A total of 82 specimens was collected as follows:
Massachusetts. Suffolk County. Grape Island, 12-25 June 2008, pitfall (one female). Rainsford Island, 15 July 2008, hand-collected (four males, five females). Thompson Island, 20-26 June 2007, pitfall (two males, one female); 3-13 July 2007, pitfall (one male); 7 May 2008, hand-collected (24 males, 37 females); 19 June 2008, hand-collected (one male); 9 July 2008, hand-collected (two males, three females); 28 May 2010, hand-collected (one specimen, gender not checked).
These, along with the original type series at MCZ (4 specimens), are all known specimens of
Photograph of the gravel “tube” at high-tide line on Thompson Island, looking away from the city of Boston. Photo by R. E. Acciavatti.
Closer view of the gravel “tube” on Thompson Island, looking toward the skyline of Boston, “tube” partly excavated in foreground. Collectors are Robert L. Davidson (foreground) and Robert E. Acciavatti (background). Photo by J. Rykken.
Cross-sectional drawing of beach at Thompson Island site showing mound of gravel and underlying depression created by seawater at high tide. Seawater is to the right, high ground and vegetation is out of sight to the left. Distance across the widest part of the gravel “tube” is about a meter. Drawing by J. Hyland.
We do not know whether at this early season all beetles remain in this zone, whether they migrate inland during bad weather, nor whether they remain in this zone at night. We do know that later in the season at least some individuals can be found higher on the beach (the original series from 2007 was taken in late June and early July high on the beach not far from the beginnings of the vegetated zone). The species is short-winged and no full-winged individual has yet been reported, so moving some distance is no trivial matter; movement inland presumably has a purpose. We do not know whether at some periods they remain in the upper beach zone or are merely in transit to much higher ground. We did not observe any individuals
We should mention that on May 7, 2008, no other carabids were found mixed with
The earliest reference to habitat for
What about the future? It appears that Boston Harbor has been the introduction point for
We are indebted to the staff at Boston Harbor Islands national park area who facilitated our research on the islands, and the University of Massachusetts Boston Marine Operations staff who transported us to the islands. Students, interns, volunteers and members of the Islands Ambassadors program assisted us with field collections. Ross Bell was an inspiring mentor to both authors in their formative years, and continues to inspire us with his lifelong passion for the natural world and remarkable knowledge of carabid beetles. It is a particular pleasure for us that Ross Bell was present with us in the lab on that fateful day in October, 2007, when we first recognized