Hotspots of endemic terrestrial invertebrates in southern Greece

Abstract

In the present paper we identify biodiversity hotspots of endemic terrestrial invertebrates in southern Greece, using four different criteria and five taxonomic groups. The hotspots identification procedure was facilitated by the use of the MaplnfoPro G.I.S. software. We mapped the known distribution of 424 endemic species on a digital map of southern Greece in 548 10 × 10 km2 grids. The total number of registrations (records per grid) is 3826 in 465 grids. Registrations are unevenly distributed in the five sub-regions of the study area, a fact that results from both the unequal collecting effort applied in each sub-region and their different levels of endemism. We first identified the hotspots for each individual taxonomic group, and then for the total species pool. Finally, we analyzed the species saturation pattern in order to find the minimum number of grids needed for the inclusion of 85% of the total number of species. The most important hotspots are mostly at the higher mountains of the study area, especially on Taygetos and Idi Mts. We also give a brief evaluation of the performance of the four criteria used in the case of endemic species analyses.