Inventory of the Terrestrial Arthropods and Vascular Plants of the Montane, Steppe, and Semi-Desert Grasslands of the Kyrgyz Republic

9870187迪特里希温带草原是世界上最受威胁的生态系统；因此，迫切需要努力记录剩余草原的生物多样性。在为数不多的未受破坏的温带草原中，中亚草原是研究最少的，该地区的科学家目前缺乏有效记录这些动物所需的资源。西欧和美国收藏的该地区标本的匮乏继续阻碍了对全北极动植物的研究。该项目是美国、俄罗斯和吉尔吉斯斯坦科学家合作完成的，旨在清查吉尔吉斯斯坦草原上的维管植物和节肢动物。吉尔吉斯斯坦是前苏联加盟共和国，位于四个主要沙漠地区的边界附近，包括古北界和东洋界之间的过渡带，包括沿陡峭的海拔/气候梯度排列的各种草原类型。该项目的主要具体目标是：(1)收集尽可能多的节肢动物和维管植物物种的标本，并估计中亚草原这些物种的多样性；(2)记录这一地区植物和节肢动物之间的生态相互作用(例如，草食植物与寄主植物)；以及(3)提供一个可检索的、与地理信息系统相连的、可上网的吉尔吉斯斯坦草原植物和节肢动物数据库，以及已出版的关于所选分类群的清单和鉴定指南。产生的标本和信息将有助于确定保护需求，提供参考数据，以便与其他草原地区(特别是研究较深入的新北草原)进行比较，并促进对全北极维管植物和节肢动物的综合治疗。

9870187 Dietrich Temperate grasslands are the most threatened of the world's ecosystems; thus, efforts to document the biodiversity of those remaining are urgently needed. Among the few remaining unspoiled temperate grasslands, the steppes of Central Asia are the least well studied, and scientists in the region currently lack the resources necessary to document the fauna effectively. The paucity of specimens from this region in western European and U.S. collections continues to impede research on the Holarctic flora and fauna. This project is a collaborative effort by U.S., Russian, and Kyrgyz scientists to inventory vascular plants and arthropods in the grasslands of Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet Republic situated near the borders of four major desert regions, comprising a transition zone between the Palearctic and Oriental realms, and encompassing a variety of grassland types arranged along steep elevational/climatic gradients. The primary specific goals of the project are: (1) to collect specimens of as many species of arthropods and vascular plants as possible and estimate the diversity of these groups in Central Asian grasslands; (2) to document ecological interactions (e.g., herbivore-host plant) among plants and arthropods in this region; and (3) to provide a searchable, GIS-linked, Internet-accessible database of the grassland flora and arthropod fauna of Kyrgyzstan as well as published checklists and identification guides for selected taxa. The specimens and information generated will aid in identifying conservation needs, provide reference data for comparison to other grassland regions (particularly the more intensively studied Nearctic prairies), and facilitate comprehensive treatments of the vascular flora and arthropod fauna of the Holarctic.