Global warNing: challenges, threats and opportunities for ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in high altitude habitats

TL;DR

This paper synthesizes ground beetle distribution in high altitude habitats, focusing on ice-related landforms and climate change impacts, emphasizing the need for large-scale biodiversity monitoring in alpine regions.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive overview of high altitude ground beetle assemblages and discusses their potential as climate refugia amid warming trends.

Findings

Ice-related landforms serve as climatic refugia for cold-adapted beetles

Climate warming threatens high altitude beetle populations

A large-scale monitoring program is urgently needed

Abstract

Aim of this paper is to provide the first comprehensive synthesis about ground beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) distribution in high altitude habitats. Specifically, the attention is focused on the species assemblages living on the most common ice-related mountain landforms (glaciers, debris-covered glaciers, glacier forelands and rock glaciers) and on the challenges, threats and opportunities carabids living in these habitats have to face in relation to the ongoing climate warming. The suggested role of the ice-related alpine landforms, as present climatic refugia for cold-adapted ground beetles, is discussed. Finally, the needs to develop a large-scale High-alpine Biodiversity Monitoring Program to describe how the current climate change is shaping the distribution of high altitude specialists, is highlighted.