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Reliable taxonomy underpins communication in all of biology, not least nature conservation and sustainable use of ecosystem resources. The flexibility of taxonomic interpretations, however, presents a serious challenge for end-users of taxonomic concepts. Users need standardised and continuously harmonised taxonomic reference systems, as well as highquality and complete taxonomic data sets, but these are generally lacking for nonspecialists. The solution is in dynamic, expertly curated web-based taxonomic tools. The Pan-European Species-directories Infrastructure (PESI) worked to solve this key issue by providing a taxonomic e-infrastructure for Europe. It strengthened the relevant social (expertise) and information (standards, data and technical) capacities of five major community networks on taxonomic indexing in Europe, which is essential for proper biodiversity assessment and monitoring activities. The key objectives of PESI were: 1) standardisation in taxonomic reference systems, 2) enhancement of the quality and completeness of taxonomic data sets and 3) creation of integrated access to taxonomic information. New information This paper describes the results of PESI and its future prospects, including the involvement in major European biodiversity informatics initiatives and programs., PESI was funded by the European Commission under the Seventh Framework Program (project reference: RI-223806), contributing to the FP7-INFRASTRUCTURES 'Capacities' sub-program under the Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) funding scheme (call: FP7-INFRASTRUCTURES-2007-2).

Tarracoblaniulus phantasmanus n. sp. is described from Tarragona province, Spain and compared with the only known other species known in the genus, T. lagari Mauriès & Vicente, 1977, from which it differs mainly in having only 5, instead of 15 or more, straight spines on the posterior gonopod. The female vulva (unknown in T. lagari) is very different from all known blaniulid vulvae. Based on a large number of specimens, the postembryonic development (euanamorphosis) from stadium II onward is described. This is highly variable, with three to six apodous body rings in stadium IV, which is the most variable number so far recorded in Blaniulidae. Accordingly, specimens beyond stadium VIII could not be assigned to a specific stadium. At least some males are morphologically distinguishable in stadium IV, morphologically mature males appear in stadium VIII, possibly already in stadium VII. The life cycle of the new species is tentatively suggested to involve at least three years. The monthly mean density of the total population was 28.82 ind/m2 across the whole soil profile. Statistically significant differences in density values between months and Spearman’s rank correlation analyses between the monthly mean values of density and temperature show that T. phantasmanus presents a maximum density in the coldest months and a minimum one in the summer. Significant differences between monthly mean densities of different soil levels and the Usher index values show that during the spring and summer T. phantasmanus is concentrated in the mineral horizon A. In autumn, during winter and up to early spring, the population shows a clear tendency to move up towards horizon H and horizon L/F. Concerning horizontal distribution, Morisita index monthly values for each of the horizons indicate that the species is distributed in patches.Se describe Tarracoblaniulus phantasmanus n. sp., especie encontrada en la provincia de Tarragona (España), y se compara con la única especie conocida del género, T. lagari Mauriès & Vicente, 1977, de la cual difiere principalmente por tener sólo 5 espinas, en lugar de 15 o más, en el gonópodo posterior. La vulva de la hembra (desconocida en T. lagari) es muy distinta a todas las vulvas conocidas de blaniúlidos. En base a los numerosos ejemplares disponibles, se describe asimismo el desarrollo postembrionario (euanamorphosis) a partir del estadio II. Este desarrollo se manifiesta muy variable, con tres a seis anillos ápodos en el tronco del estadio IV, número que con mucho es el más elevado encontrado en Blaniulidae. De acuerdo con estos resultados, los ejemplares pertenecientes a estadios posteriores al VII no pueden ser asignados a un estadio específico. Algunos machos son morfológicamente distinguibles en el estadio IV y los machos morfológicamente maduros aparecen en el estadio VIII y posiblemente ya lo sean en el estadio VII. El ciclo vital de la nueva especie parece sugerir una duración de al menos tres años. La densidad mensual media registrada para el total de la población es de 28.82 ind/m2 en el conjunto del perfil edáfico. Diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre los valores de densidad mensuales y el análisis de correlación de rango de Spearman entre la densidad mensual media y la temperatura muestran que T. phantasmanus presenta una densidad máxima en los meses más fríos y un valor mínimo durante el verano. Diferencias siginificativas entre las densidades mensuales medias registradas en los distintos horizontes edáficos y los valores del índice de Usher, ponen de manifiesto que durante la primavera y el verano T. phantasmanus se situa principalmente en el horizonte mineral A. Durante el otoño, el invierno y hasta principios de la primavera, la población muestra una clara tendencia a ocupar los horizontes superiores H y L/F. En cuanto a la distribución horizontal, los valores mensuales del índice de Morisita obtenidos para cada uno de los horizontes indican que la especie tiene una distribución agregativa.

Background In this contribution we present detailed distribution and abundance data for arthropod species identified during the BALA - Biodiversity of Arthropods from the Laurisilva of the A zores (1999-2004) and BALA2 projects (2010-2011) from 18 native forest fragments in seven of the nine Azorean islands (all excluding Graciosa and Corvo islands, which have no native forest left). New information Of the total 286 species identified, 81% were captured between 1999 and 2000, a period during which only 39% of all the samples were collected. On average, arthropod richness for each island increased by 10% during the time frame of these projects. The classes Arachnida, Chilopoda and Diplopoda represent the most remarkable cases of new island records, with more than 30% of the records being novelties. This study stresses the need to expand the approaches applied in these projects to other habitats in the Azores, and more importantly to other less surveyed taxonomic groups (e.g. Diptera and Hymenoptera). These steps are fundamental for getting a more accurate assessment of biodiversity in the archipelago. © Borges P et al.

Reliable taxonomy underpins communication in all of biology, not least nature conservation and sustainable use of ecosystem resources. The flexibility of taxonomic interpretations,however, presents a serious challenge for end-users of taxonomic concepts. Users need standardised and continuously harmonised taxonomic reference systems, as well as high quality and complete taxonomic data sets, but these are generally lacking for non-specialists. The solution is in dynamic, expertly curated web-based taxonomic tools. The Pan-European Species-directories Infrastructure (PESI) worked to solve this key issue by providing a taxonomic e-infrastructure for Europe. It strengthened the relevant social (expertise) and information (standards, data and technical) capacities of five major community networks on taxonomic indexing in Europe, which is essential for proper biodiversity assessment and monitoring activities. The key objectives of PESI were: 1) standardisation in taxonomic reference systems, 2) enhancement of the quality and completeness of taxonomic data sets and 3) creation of integrated access to taxonomic information. New information This paper describes the results of PESI and its future prospects, including the involvement in major European biodiversity informatics initiatives and programs. Yes

The genus Propolydesmus Verhoeff, 1895 is redefined, with Hormobrachium Attems, 1940 considered as its subjective junior synonym (syn. n.!); it currently encompasses at least a dozen valid species ranging from Macaronesia in the west to Central Europe in the east. Two species of Propolydesmus are known from the Canary Islands: P. laevidentatus (Loksa, 1967) (=Polydesmus brincki Demange, 1970, syn. n.!), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, occurring in Madeira, the Azores and Tenerife, Canary Islands, and P. dismilus (Berlese, 1891), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, which is newly recorded from Macaronesia (Canary Islands, Tenerife). Gonopods of both these species are illustrated, and the range of variation in P. laevidentatus is shown to be considerable.Se redefine el género Propolydesmus Verhoeff, 1895 —considerando a Hormobrachium Attems, 1940 como un sinónimo junior subjetivo (syn. n.)— el cual comprende una docena de especies extendidas desde Macaronesia, al oeste, hasta Centroeuropa, al este. En las islas Canarias se conocen dos especies de Propolydesmus: P. laevidentatus (Loksa, 1967) (= Polydesmus brincki Demange, 1970, syn. n.), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, que vive en Madeira, Azores y Tenerife, y P. dismilus (Berlese, 1891), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, que se cita por primera vez en Macaronesia (islas Canarias: Tenerife). Se ilustran los gonopodos de ambas especies y se demuestra el considerable grado de variación de P. laevidentatus.

Reliable taxonomy underpins communication in all of biology, not least nature conservation and sustainable use of ecosystem resources. The flexibility of taxonomic interpretations, however, presents a serious challenge for end-users of taxonomic concepts. Users need standardised and continuously harmonised taxonomic reference systems, as well as highquality and complete taxonomic data sets, but these are generally lacking for nonspecialists. The solution is in dynamic, expertly curated web-based taxonomic tools. The Pan-European Species-directories Infrastructure (PESI) worked to solve this key issue by providing a taxonomic e-infrastructure for Europe. It strengthened the relevant social (expertise) and information (standards, data and technical) capacities of five major community networks on taxonomic indexing in Europe, which is essential for proper biodiversity assessment and monitoring activities. The key objectives of PESI were: 1) standardisation in taxonomic reference systems, 2) enhancement of the quality and completeness of taxonomic data sets and 3) creation of integrated access to taxonomic information. New information This paper describes the results of PESI and its future prospects, including the involvement in major European biodiversity informatics initiatives and programs. © de Jong Y et al.

Tarracoblaniulus phantasmanus n. sp. is described from Tarragona province, Spain and compared with the only known other species known in the genus, T. lagari Mauriès & Vicente, 1977, from which it differs mainly in having only 5, instead of 15 or more, straight spines on the posterior gonopod. The female vulva (unknown in T. lagari) is very different from all known blaniulid vulvae. Based on a large number of specimens, the postembryonic development (euanamorphosis) from stadium II onward is described. This is highly variable, with three to six apodous body rings in stadium IV, which is the most variable number so far recorded in Blaniulidae. Accordingly, specimens beyond stadium VIII could not be assigned to a specific stadium. At least some males are morphologically distinguishable in stadium IV, morphologically mature males appear in stadium VIII, possibly already in stadium VII. The life cycle of the new species is tentatively suggested to involve at least three years. The monthly mean density of the total population was 28.82 ind/m2 across the whole soil profile. Statistically significant differences in density values between months and Spearman’s rank correlation analyses between the monthly mean values of density and temperature show that T. phantasmanus presents a maximum density in the coldest months and a minimum one in the summer. Significant differences between monthly mean densities of different soil levels and the Usher index values show that during the spring and summer T. phantasmanus is concentrated in the mineral horizon A. In autumn, during winter and up to early spring, the population shows a clear tendency to move up towards horizon H and horizon L/F. Concerning horizontal distribution, Morisita index monthly values for each of the horizons indicate that the species is distributed in patches. Se describe Tarracoblaniulus phantasmanus n. sp., especie encontrada en la provincia de Tarragona (España), y se compara con la única especie conocida del género, T. lagari Mauriès & Vicente, 1977, de la cual difiere principalmente por tener sólo 5 espinas, en lugar de 15 o más, en el gonópodo posterior. La vulva de la hembra (desconocida en T. lagari) es muy distinta a todas las vulvas conocidas de blaniúlidos. En base a los numerosos ejemplares disponibles, se describe asimismo el desarrollo postembrionario (euanamorphosis) a partir del estadio II. Este desarrollo se manifiesta muy variable, con tres a seis anillos ápodos en el tronco del estadio IV, número que con mucho es el más elevado encontrado en Blaniulidae. De acuerdo con estos resultados, los ejemplares pertenecientes a estadios posteriores al VII no pueden ser asignados a un estadio específico. Algunos machos son morfológicamente distinguibles en el estadio IV y los machos morfológicamente maduros aparecen en el estadio VIII y posiblemente ya lo sean en el estadio VII. El ciclo vital de la nueva especie parece sugerir una duración de al menos tres años. La densidad mensual media registrada para el total de la población es de 28.82 ind/m2 en el conjunto del perfil edáfico. Diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre los valores de densidad mensuales y el análisis de correlación de rango de Spearman entre la densidad mensual media y la temperatura muestran que T. phantasmanus presenta una densidad máxima en los meses más fríos y un valor mínimo durante el verano. Diferencias siginificativas entre las densidades mensuales medias registradas en los distintos horizontes edáficos y los valores del índice de Usher, ponen de manifiesto que durante la primavera y el verano T. phantasmanus se situa principalmente en el horizonte mineral A. Durante el otoño, el invierno y hasta principios de la primavera, la población muestra una clara tendencia a ocupar los horizontes superiores H y L/F. En cuanto a la distribución horizontal, los valores mensuales del índice de Morisita obtenidos para cada uno de los horizontes indican que la especie tiene una distribución agregativa.

Afropachyiulus mauriesi n. sp. (Fig. 5–9) Material examined. Holotype: adult male; Algeria, North East, Annaba, (ex. Bona), N36°54, E07°47, alt. 22 m, 1863, F. Meinert leg. (Natural History Museum of Denmark — ZMUC) Paratypes: 1 subadult female, 7 males (5 of the males in pieces), data as holotype (ZMUC). Etymology: The species is named after Jean-Paul Mauriès for his devotion to millipede taxonomy and for making an invaluable contribution to Pachyiulini taxonomy. Diagnosis: A species of the A. comatus group with 2 frontal setae, a whorl of ca. 12 densely set setae at the metatergal margin, length of setae 0.11–0.13 × body height; cavity between terminal processes of opisthomerital process smooth. Description (All measurements in mm) Body yellowish (colour probably changed after long preservation in ethanol), antennae and telson paler, prozonites glossy, metazonites deeply furrowed and darker. Ventral side and legs yellowish. Body length measured along the line of ozopores: 13.3 (males) and 12.3 (immature female); vertical diameter at the 15 th body ring: 0.9–1.5 (males) and 1.1 (immature female); Ratio length/height: 14 (male). Number of podous body rings: 35–44 (males) and 47 (female). Apodous rings: 2–4. Head with two frontal setae. A whorl of short setae at the margin of metazonite (Fig. 5). Number of setae ca. 12. Length of setae: 0.13 × body height (male) and 0.11 body height (female). Defense glands showing as prominent brownish spots. Ozopores opening behind the suture. Male mandibles without protruding lobes. Ocelli missing. Length of antennae 1.4 × body height (male holotype) and 1 × body height (female). Length of legs 0.8 × body height (male), 0.6 × body height (female p). Male legs with postfemoral sole pads. Telson rounded, with an extensive cover of long setae, no preanal projection. Anterior gonopods (Fig. 6): Mesal margin almost straight, lateral margin convex, protruding as a large bulge. Basal shaft with parallel margins, almost 2/3 broad as the bowl. Ridge almost parallel-sided, with blunt terminal projection. Lateral prominence low, oblique. Tip of gonopod pointed. Both denticles almost of the same size, markedly serrated marginally and fused at the basis. Posterior gonopods (Fig. 7–9): Mesomerital process simple, slenderer and rather longer than in A. comatus, also bent but with a pointed tip. Opisthomerital process with basally subparallel margins, apically divided into a triangular anterior process with a twisted acuminate tip and a triangular posterior process with a fine pointed tip. Lateral ridge running across posterior process. Lateral edge horizontal and finely serrated, running under anterior process. No spines observed on the surface of the concavity surrounded by the lateral and posterior processes of the opisthomerite. Remarks. The three species groups suggested above help to get an overview of the variation within Afropachyiulus, but future (phylogenetic) studies may well result in a totally different arrangement. For example, the A. comatus -group is virtually identical to Dolichoiulus sensu Enghoff (1992), except for the lack of metazonital setae in Dolichoiulus. Another very similar genus is Anagaiulus Enghoff, 1992, which has metazonital setae but lacks frontal setae. Strasser (1970) mentioned that Elbaiulus Verhoeff, 1930, shows many similarities with Afropachyiulus. Strasser's redescription (1971) of E. chrysopygus (Berlese, 1882), senior synonym of the type species of Elbaiulus, however, shows quite different gonopods. Schubart (1960) included lack of ventral pads on male legs in his diagnosis of Afropachyiulus. However, all the information we have about the type species, A. oraniensis, is that the second pair of male legs lacks these pads. For A. lepineyi, Verhoeff (1936) mentioned that the anteriormost pairs of legs lack pads, but Strasser (1970) noticed that although the second pair of male legs in A. maritimus lacks pads, these are present on the tibia of the following pairs. A. comatus, like the new species we describe here, has ventral pads on the postfemora and tibiae (second pair only on tibiae). While Afropachyiulus remains a very poorly defined genus, the A. comatus group appears quite welldefined. The study of recently collected specimens of A. comatus reveals a few differences from the syntypes of comatus as described by Attems (see Table 2); in particular in the number of the frontal setae: only 2 were observed on the new material while 4 up to 6 were described by Attems (1899). The frontal setae were unfortunately broken on the studied syntypes. However, this character may show intraspecific variation, as noticed in the nemasomatid genus Orinisobates by Enghoff (1985). On the other hand, the new species we describe here, although very similar to A. comatus, differs clearly in metazonital setation and also in the surface structure of the tip of the opisthomerital process (see Table 2)., Published as part of Akkari, N. & Enghoff, H., 2008, Notes on the genus Afropachyiulus Schubart, 1960 (Diplopoda: Julida: Julidae) with a description of a new species from Algeria and a redescription of A. comatus (Attems, 1899), pp. 29-36 in Zootaxa 1872 on pages 33-35, {"references":["Enghoff, H. (1992). Dolichoiulus - a mostly Macaronesian multitude of millipedes. With the description of a related new genus from Tenerife, Canary Islands (Diplopoda, Julida, Julidae). Entomologica scandinavica Supplement 40, 1 - 158.","Strasser, C. (1970) (for 1969). Diplopodi delle Isole Eolie, d'Ustica ed Egadi. Atti della Accademia Gioenia di Scienze Naturali in Catania, ser 7, 1, 121 - 143.","Schubart, O. (1960). Ein weiterer Beitrag zur Diplopoden-Fauna Marokkos. Bulletin de la Societe des Sciences naturelles et physiques du Maroc 40, 159 - 232.","Verhoeff, K. W. (1936). Uber einige Myriapoden und einen Isopoden aus mediterranen Hohlen. Mitteilungen von Hohlen- und Karstforschung 1936, 4, 155 - 162.","Attems, C. G. (1899). Neues uber palaarktische Myriopoden. Zoologische Jahrbucher Syst. 12, 286 - 336, pl. 14 - 16.","Enghoff, H. (1985). The millipede family Nemasomatidae. With the description of a new genus, and a revision of Orinisobates (Diplopoda: Julida). Entomologica scandinavica 16, 27 - 67."]}

A new millipede species, Dorypetalum helenae (Callipodida: Dorypetalidae), is described from the Kuru Dağ Mts, European Turkey. The species is morphologically close to D. bulgaricum from the Rhodope Mts, SE Bulgaria but is well distinguished by the particular, racket-shaped mesal coxosternal process of gonopods. All hitherto described species in the genus are reviewed, and new illustrations are provided for D. bosniense and D. trispiculigerum. A new key for identification of the species in the genus is made to accommodate the new findings.

Copyright © Springer 2005. Nineteen areas in seven of the nine Azorean islands were evaluated for species diversity and rarity based on soil epigean arthropods. Fifteen out of the 19 study areas are managed as Natural Forest Reserves and the remaining four were included due to their importance as indigenous forest cover. Four of the 19 areas are not included in the European Conservation network, NATURA 2000. Two sampling replicates were run per study area, and a total of 191 species were collected; 43 of those species (23%) are endemic to the archipelago and 12 have yet to be described. To produce an unbiased multiple-criteria index (importance value for conservation, IV-C) incorporating diversity and rarity based indices, an iterative partial multiple regression analysis was performed. In addition, an irreplaceability index and the complementarity method (using both optimisation and heuristic methods) were used for priority-reserves analyses. It was concluded that at least one well-managed reserve per island is absolutely necessary to have a good fraction of the endemic arthropods preserved. We found that for presence/absence data the suboptimal complementarity algorithm provides solutions as good as the optimal algorithm. For abundance data, optimal solutions indicate that most reserves are needed if we want that at least 50% of endemic arthropod populations are represented in a minimum set of reserves. Consistently, two of the four areas not included in the NATURA 2000 framework were considered of high priority, indicating that vascular plants and bird species used to determine NATURA 2000 sites are not good surrogates of arthropod diversity in the Azores. The most irreplaceable reserves are those located in older islands, which indicates that geological history plays an important role in explaining faunal diversity of arthropods in the Azores. Based both on the uniqueness of species composition and high species richness, conservation efforts should be focused on the unmanaged Pico Alto region in the archipelago’s oldest island, Santa Maria.

The genus Propolydesmus Verhoeff, 1895 is redefined, with Hormobrachium Attems, 1940 considered as its subjective junior synonym (syn. n.!); it currently encompasses at least a dozen valid species ranging from Macaronesia in the west to Central Europe in the east. Two species of Propolydesmus are known from the Canary Islands: P. laevidentatus (Loksa, 1967) (=Polydesmus brincki Demange, 1970, syn. n.!), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, occurring in Madeira, the Azores and Tenerife, Canary Islands, and P. dismilus (Berlese, 1891), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, which is newly recorded from Macaronesia (Canary Islands, Tenerife). Gonopods of both these species are illustrated, and the range of variation in P. laevidentatus is shown to be considerable. Se redefine el género Propolydesmus Verhoeff, 1895 —considerando a Hormobrachium Attems, 1940 como un sinónimo junior subjetivo (syn. n.)— el cual comprende una docena de especies extendidas desde Macaronesia, al oeste, hasta Centroeuropa, al este. En las islas Canarias se conocen dos especies de Propolydesmus: P. laevidentatus (Loksa, 1967) (= Polydesmus brincki Demange, 1970, syn. n.), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, que vive en Madeira, Azores y Tenerife, y P. dismilus (Berlese, 1891), comb. n. ex Polydesmus, que se cita por primera vez en Macaronesia (islas Canarias: Tenerife). Se ilustran los gonopodos de ambas especies y se demuestra el considerable grado de variación de P. laevidentatus.

Nesta contribuição pretendemos avaliar a aplicação dos modelos RESTAN, "Relação entre o número de Espécies e o número de Táxones de Alto Nível", à fauna de artrópodes de vários habitats das ilhas dos Açores. Utilizámos várias bases de dados recentemente obtidas baseadas em amostragens estandardizadas de artrópodes epígeos do solo em florestas de áreas protegidas, artrópodes fitófagos e predadores de pastagens semeadas e semi-naturais e artrópodes da copa da árvore endémica Juniperus brevifolia. Os modelos RESTAN são aplicados não só usando dados puramente taxonómicos, mas igualmente agrupando os taxa em termos de estratégias ecológicas (e.g. herbívoros, predadores) e de colonização das ilhas (e.g. endémicos). Deste modo pensamos poder avaliar a aplicabilidade destes modelos em estudos de estrutura de comunidades e de conservação. Para os Açores, a aplicação dos modelos RESTAN constitui uma forma muito prática e eficaz de obter estimativas de diversidade. De facto, em todas as matrizes de dados analisadas a riqueza de espécies pode ser estimada eficazmente usando apenas a riqueza em géneros, sendo a relação linear. Ao nível da família, os modelos estimadores possuem um menor poder explicativo e são melhor explicados por uma função exponencial. O escalonamento de Reservas Florestais Naturais dos Açores em termos de biodiversidade de artrópodes endémicos pode ser efectuado usando informação taxonómica ao nível do género. A aplicação de métodos de estimativa rápida de biodiversidade fica assim facilitada, podendo usar-se parataxonomistas bem treinados para o processo de triagem do grande número de amostras geralmente necessárias em estudos ecológicos. Discute-se igualmente a aplicabilidade dos modelos RESTAN a dados de diversidade alfa, beta e gama. ABSTRACT: In this contribution we examine the predictive power of numbers of higher taxa (orders, families and genera) as surrogates of species richness ("RESTAN" models – models based on linear relationship between species and higher taxa numbers) for the Azorean arthropod fauna. Recently, two large entomological and ecological studies were performed in the Azores, using standardized sampling protocols to estimate the diversity of arthropods in grassland and native forests. We use datasets available from those studies to address a few technical questions: A. what is the impact of using several measures of diversity (alpha, gamma and beta species diversity; Shannon-Wiener index of diversity; Evenness) based on numbers of families and genera for canopy arthropods? For instance, could be predicted that values of beta-diversity decrease with the use of higher-taxa estimates. All the measures of diversity could be used, being the genera the best predictor; B. how well behave the RESTAN models for functional groups of species like grass-feeding and web-building spiders in grasslands? The predictive power of higher-taxa is low using web-building spiders, due to few families being envolved and some genera having many species locally represented; C. assuming at least one sample with no species then there will be also no highertaxa in that sample. Consequently, the curve of the relationship between highertaxa richness and species richness should be anchored to the origin (y= bx). What is the predictive value of this model in comparison with the linear (y =a + bx), log-log (log y = a + b log x) and exponential (y = A • e b x) models? The best fit was obtained with the linear model for the genus-species relationship, but the variables are not normally distributed and the log-log model should be preferable. For the family-species relationship the exponential model is the best. The linear model anchored to the origin (y =bx) has some statistical pitfalls and was of less predictive value; D. in conservation studies what is the predictive value of higher-taxa in ranking protected areas? We found that the numbers of arthropod genera could successfully rank the Natural Forest Reserves as well as numbers of species (using endemic species dataset). We found that in the Azores the predictions of species richness using higher-taxa are quite reasonable, mainly because of low levels of diversity. Therefore, costeffective studies could use only genera, since the species richness of arthropods could be predicted reasonably closely from their genus-level richness. Family and order-level data were less informative for all datasets. We suggest that in the Azores as a consequence of the low levels of species diversification with a great proportion of monospecific genera, the use of parataxonomists trained in genus-level identification could be appropriate for sorting large numbers of ecological samples.

Copyright © 2000 Sociedade Afonso Chaves. A fauna de artrópodes das pastagens de três ilhas dos Açores (S. Maria, Terceira e Pico) foi alvo de uma amostragem detalhada usando várias técnicas de amostragem (armadilhas pitfall, aspirador entomológico VORTIS e colheitas directas). Um total de 63 espécies de insectos herbívoros sugadores, 65 espécies de insectos herbívoros mastigadores e 117 espécies de artrópodes predadores foram amostrados durante cinco períodos de amostragem cobrindo três estações do ano em 1994 (primavera, Verão e Outono) e duas em 1995 (primavera e Verão). A presente contribuição serve para listar 85 novidades: 22 espécies são novas para o arquipélago, sendo cinco delas (quatro de S. Maria e Uma da Terceira) endémicas; 63 espécies constituem novidade para S. Maria, 21 são novas para a Terceira e 28 são novas para O Pico. Para cada espécie apresenta-se alguns comentários sobre a sua distribuição e ecologia. ABSTRACT: The pasture arthropod fauna of three Azorean islands (S. Maria, Terceira and Pico) was surveyed through several sampling methods (pitfall traps, VORTIS suction machine, direct searching). Sucking (63 species) and chewing (65 species) arthropod herbivores and 117 species of predatory arthropods were sampled during five sampling periods covering three seasons in 1994 (Spring, Summer and Autumn) and two in 1995 (Spring and Summer). In the present contribution, 85 species of arthropods are listed as new records: 22 species were not previously known from any of the Azorean islands, five of which are considered endemic (four from S. Maria and one from Terceira) and will be described elsewhere; 63 species are recorded for the first time for S. Maria, 21 for Terceira and 28 for Pico. For each species some comments are made on their distribution and ecology.

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