A preliminary study of terrestrial is opod diversit y in coastal wetlands of Tunisia
Résumé
In Tunisia, while wetlands are considered as remarkable habitats for their faunal and floral diversity, few studies on the species diversity of terrestrial isopods were done. To fill this gap, we carried out a field study in 28 wetlands (lagoons, lakes and sebkhas) located along the Tunisian coast. Isopods were collected by hand search each time with the same sampling effort. In the laboratory, isopods were identified and counted. Physico-chemical analyses were performed from soil sampled at each site in order to study the distribution of isopods according to the environmental factors. Thirteen species of terrestrial isopods belonging to 7 families were identified. Chaetophiloscia elongata and Porcellio laevis were the most abundant species; their abundance was 40.3 and 22.3 %, respectively. Data analyses showed a significant difference in the distribution of isopods depending on wetland types. However, no statistical difference was found in isopod distribution in relation to bioclimatic zones.