Spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) of the Visimskiy Nature Biosphere Reserve (Middle Urals)

Study Extent

(подробности о датасете и его происхождении)

Sampling

All data about epigeobiont, soil- and litter-dwelling spiders come from pitfall-traps and litter sifting. Pitfall-traps were installed in a line of 10 ones usually (from 4 to 11). Their duration was 1–2 weeks typically (from 3 days to 3 weeks). Glass cans (an opening diameter is 75 mm), or plastic glasses (an opening diameter is 65 mm), filled by formaldehyde or acetic acid solution were used as traps. We sampled soil litter from surface of 50×50, 20×20 or 15×15 cm, sifted and investigated it on white plastic film. Spiders of herb layer were collected by entomological net sweeping. Quantitative samples come from 5 replications by 20 sweeps unless otherwise defined in the samplingEffort field. A small portion of faunistic material was picked by tree or shrub crown shaking and by manual collecting.

Quality Control

The collection is stored in the Perm State University (PSU). A few specimens are stored in the Zoological Museum of the Moscow State University (ZMMU). Esyunin S.L. has identified all the adult individuals to the species level. Juvenile individuals were identified to the species, genera or family level depending on informative value of somatic features (body size, shape and coloration, eyes configuration, chaetotaxy etc.). The taxonomical nomenclature accords the World Spider Catalog (2023). The collected material is being a base for more than 30 peer-reviewed articles and 13 reports on specialized conferences.

Method steps

1. The project is long-term and continues still

The dataset includes occurrences of 278 spider species (what counts 146 genera and 20 families in total) (table). Of them, we provide 18 species of the Visimskiy Reserve for the first time: Agnyphantes expunctus (O.Pickard-Cambridge, 1875), Agroeca lusatica (L.Koch, 1875), Argyroneta aquatica (Clerck, 1757), Cheiracanthium punctorium (Villers, 1789), Clubiona pallidula (Clerck, 1757), Dictyna major Menge, 1869, Entelecara congenera (O.Pickard-Cambridge, 1879), Euophrys frontalis (Walckenaer, 1802), Haplodrassus umbratilis (L.Koch, 1866), Improphantes complicatus (Emerton, 1882), Lophomma punctatum (Blackwall, 1841), Pardosa prativaga (L.Koch, 1870), Talavera thorelli (Kulczyński, 1891), Tetragnatha dearmata Thorell, 1873, Thyreostenius parasiticus (Westring, 1851), Walckenaeria kochi (O.Pickard-Cambridge, 1873), Xysticus kochi Thorell, 1872, Zelotes electus (C.L.Koch, 1839). We exclude two species out this list (Pardosa palustris (Linnaeus, 1758) and Megalepthyphantes nebulosus (Sundevall, 1830)) because of mistakes in publications (Esyunin, Efimik, 2000 and Esyunin, Efimik, 1996a respectively).

1. Araneae
   common name: Spiders rank: order

The Visimskiy Biosphere Reserve is located in the Sverdlovsk Region and captures three city districts: Gornouralskiy, Kirovgradskiy & Verkhniy Tagil. Originally, the reserve area was 9531 ha (95 sq.km) in 1971 after its establishment, and it was extended in 1973, 1980 & 2001 further, being 33497 ha (335 sq.km) currently. The territory is elongated in latitudinal direction. Its main part is situated on western macroslope of the Ural Mountain range, in upstream of the Sulyom river. A smaller part is located on the the eastern macroslope and includes watershed and upstream of the Vogulka river. Ural Mountains spread from North to South at more than 2000 km and are the border between Europe and Asia. The studied region, the Visimskiy Reserve, is located in the Middle Urals, the lowest part of Urals. The major part of the reserve lies on western macroslope and only minor part lies on watershed crest (Prokaev and Kuznetsova 1974). The climate here is typical for the temperate continental boreal zone. The yearly average air temperature is +1.1 °С and average annual precipitation is 598.5 mm, according to data provided by the "Visim" meteorological station from 1976 to 2022. The soddy-podzolic and brown forest soils are the most widespread soils on the reserve territory (Gafurov and Korkina 2021). According to forest vegetation subdivision, the reserve belongs to the south taiga county of the Middle Ural low-mountain province of the Ural forest-mountain area (in terms of Kolesnikov 1960). The primary vegetation is fir-spruce (Abies-Picea) forests here, and birch (Betula) forests are the most common derivative vegetation. Currently, the protected part of the Visimskiy Reserve is 335 sq.km. The buffer zone by 461 sq.km surrounds it. Forest cuts of different age, mostly on the middle stages of secondary succession, predominate at this buffer. There is a service road, rarely used, along the northern reserve border, which is closed to public access. There are no permanent living buildings within the reserve, but there are forest lodges for temporary stays. There is a small village "Bolshye Galashki" in buffer zone, 1 km near from western reserve border. Only three families live year-round here with a few more residing during the summer period.