Isotomidae (Collembola) from northern Iran with description of a new species of Isotomodes Linnaniemi

Abstract

The present study describes the fauna of Isotomidae in southern part of the Caspian Sea (northern Iran). During 2018–2019, 118 samples of soil, leaf litter, moss, and decaying wood were collected from different locations in three northern provinces, Mazandaran, Guilan, and Golestan. Collembola specimens were extracted using modified Tullgren funnels. Ten genera and eighteen species of Isotomidae have been identified and listed here; among them a new species, Isotomodes golestani sp. nov., from the Golestan province is described. Collection information for identified species and a key to the known species of the genus Isotomodes in the West and Central Asia are also provided. The type specimens were deposited in the insect collection of Entomology lab in Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture University of Guilan, Rasht and Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Sari, Iran.

Keywords

• Asia
• Biodiversity
• Fauna
• Springtails
• Taxonomy