Response of copronecrophagous beetle communities to habitat disturbance in two mountains of the Mexican Transition Zone: influence of historical and ecological factors

We analyze the influence of historical and ecological factors on the diversity and composition of communities of copronecrophagous beetles associated with conserved and disturbed habitats on two mountains of the Mexican Transition Zone: one mountain of xeric (Las Derrumbadas) and the other of temperate (El Pinal) climate. We collected a total of 1113 beetles of 14 species. While abundance was similar between mountains, the number of species found on the temperate mountain (589 individuals: 11 species) was higher than on the xeric mountain (524 individuals: 5 species). On the temperate mountain, the disturbed habitat was approximately twice as diverse as the conserved habitat, while the opposite pattern was observed on the xeric mountain. Analysis of species turnover between mountains indicated the presence of two relatively different communities and the magnitude of the species turnover related to habitat disturbance depended on the type of mountain, having a higher turnover between habitat types in the temperate mountain. The xeric mountain was dominated by species belonging to the Paleoamerican Plateau distribution pattern, while the Paleoamerican Montane pattern dominated on the temperate mountain, whose species increased their abundance in disturbed habitats together with species of Nearctic affinity. Our results suggest a negative effect of habitat disturbance on the xeric mountain. While on the temperate mountain, beetle diversity seems to increase with disturbance. These results reiterate the need to consider regional-scale historical and ecological processes in order to understand the effects of disturbance and permit the establishment of conservation strategies to adequately protect the organisms, as well as the functions they provide for natural and anthropic ecosystems alike.