Nekhaeva A.A. 2018. Spiders (Arachnida, Aranei) of the High Arctic Shokalsky Island (73°N), the Kara Sea, Russia // Arthropoda Selecta. Vol.27. No.4: 367–372 [in English].
A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky prospekt 33, Moscow 119071, Russia. E-mail: adrealinea@gmail.com
doi: 10.15298/arthsel. 27.4.14
ABSTRACT. Small Arctic islands are poorly accessible territories having specific faunas. Although many of them are included in conservancy areas, virtually nothing is known about their invertebrate faunas. In the present paper, the first results of a comprehensive study of species diversity, density and activity of spiders undertaken on the Shokalsky Island (73єN) situated in the Kara Sea are provided. Spider species collected during this survey belong to the families Linyphiidae (13 species) and Tetragnathidae (one); all of them are known from the adjacent continental regions. Compared to faunas of small islands in the Barents Sea, the araneofauna of the Shokalsky Island is impoverished, which is due to the homogeneity of its habitats and colder climate.
KEY WORDS: Araneae, Arctic island, fauna, protected territory, salt marshes, tundra.