FIELD OBSERVATIONS ON THE LIFE-CYCLES AND SEASONAL ACTIVITY PATTERNS OF TEMPERATE CARABID BEETLES (COLEOPTERA, CARABIDAE) INHABITING ARABLELAND

Data regarding patterns of seasonal activity and reproductive developm ent are presented for Carabidae common in cultivated land in the tempe rate region. The data are interpreted in terms of traditional views of spring and autumn-breeding carabid lifecycles. It is concluded that, in disturbed arable habitats, the majority of species display flexibil ity in their lifecycles enabling breeding at different times of the ye ar. These more complex phenologies can be explained in terms of the ha zards of living in an annually cultivated habitat and information rega rding the major time(s) of adult emergence from pupation is of greates t value in understanding the impact of husbandry and land management p ractices cn carabid populations in agroecosystems.