title: Entomofauna of Ziban oasis, Biskra, Algeria.
abstract: An inventory was carried out at five stations in the oasis of Ziban, an oasis that is characterized by its high-quality dates, in order to study the relationships between the oasis ecosystem and its insect fauna. Specimens were sampled using pitfall traps containing ethylene glycol as a preservative. In total, 115 arthropod species were collected during 5 months of survey. These species belonged to 61 families, 17 orders, and 4 classes (12 orders from Insecta, 3 from Arachnida, 1 from Chilopoda, and 1 from Malocostraca). The most represented insect orders were Coleoptera (44.42%), Hymenoptera (20.86%), and Lepidoptera (7.87%). Represented in the collections were phytophagous, omnivorous, and predator/parasite species. Given the large number of species collected, and the largely unknown relationships existing between the various ecological groups, this study is a first step in the description of the oasis entomofauna.
authors: Technical Institute of Saharan Agronomic Development, ITDAS, Biskra, Algeria diab_nassima@yahoo.com.
authors: Nassima
authors: N
authors: Deghiche-Diab
authors: Department of Science of Soil, Plant and Food (Di.SSPA), University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
authors: Francisco
authors: F
authors: Porcelli
authors: Faculty of sciences and sciences of nature and life, Department of Agronomy, University Mohamed Kheider, Biskra, Algeria.
authors: Mohamed
authors: M
authors: Belhamra
mesh_terms: D000462:Algeria; D000818:Animals; D044822:Biodiversity; D020387:Food Chain; D007313:Insecta
keywords: ecological group; ecosystem; insect; inventory