LIFE STRATEGIES OF CARABUS-PROBLEMATICUS (COLEOPTERA, CARABIDAE) AT DIFFERENT ALTITUDES ON SNOWDON, NORTH WALES

In a study to examine the effect of climate on life cycles, a total of 408 Carabus problematicus were caught in pitfall traps at four altitu de sites between 660 m and 1055 m on Snowdon, north Wales. Under the a ssumption that the mandible condition of these beetles was related to the age of the individuals, an objective estimate, which was both sex- and size-independent, was used to separate the captures into two age categories. The results from this estimation process suggested that be etles from the different altitudes followed different life strategies; low altitude beetles being predominantly annual and high altitude bee tles predominantly biennial.