New species of Collembola (Arthropoda, Hexapoda) from Caatinga-Cerrado transition areas in Piaui, Brazil
Biodiversity; Conservation; Soil fauna; Morphology; New species
Springtails are among the main constituent arthropods of the soil mesofauna. These cosmopolitan animals measure between 0.12 and 17 mm in length and feed mainly on fungi, bacteria and plant debris. They contribute significantly to soil enrichment and nutrient cycling, and are essential for maintaining terrestrial ecosystems. There are around 9,500 described species in the world, of which only 498 are found in Brazil. Conservation units are protected areas created to preserve biological diversity and act as ideal natural laboratories for scientific research into species diversity, behavior and richness. Taxonomic studies of springtails in Brazil have increased over the last few decades, but in the state of Piaui they are still scarce and sporadic. This paper presents a taxonomic study of the Collembola fauna from Conservation Units in the state of Piaui, the description of three new species and a bibliographic review of their respective genera. The specimens were previously collected between 2019 and 2023 using pitfall traps and entomological aspirators in two areas of Piaui, Palmares National Forest and Urubu-Rei Waterfall. The procedures described in the literature were used to assemble the slides. For identification and taxonomic description, the specimens were analyzed under an optical microscope with phase contrast following specific bibliography, drawn and vectorized for the preparation of anatomical plates. All the material is deposited in the Collembola Collection of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte. The results include the description of three new species: one of Mastigoceras, a genus endemic to the country, the second species described in a hundred years with morphological and systematic updates of the genus; the description of the fourth species of Adisianus, a genus previously restricted to northern Brazil and Mexico; and finally, the description and registration of the second species of Lepidosira from the Neotropical Region. It is also hoped that some of this data will be useful for the administrations of the Conservation Units where the material was collected.