Features of the Modeling Masked in Situ Temperature-Size Rule in Large Sample Array of Carabus Granulatus L. (Coleoptera: Carabidae)
RP Gorbunov, SL Luzyanin, VV aleksanov, C Ferracini, IA Solodovnikov, AB Ruschin, TM Teofilova, V Langraf, AG Borisovskiy, D Stoĉes, AL Anciferov, AA Saveliev, KY Maksimovich and RA Sukhodolskaya*
ABSTRACT
The study investigates the manifestation of the Temperature-Size Rule in the carabid beetle Carabus granulatus across a large geographic range. TSR is a phenomenon where warmer temperatures result in smaller adult body sizes in ectothermic organisms. Using a dataset of 10172 individuals from 15 regions, we performed regression analysis to explore the relationship between body size (elytral length) and climatic variables. Initial simple regressions showed no clear evidence of TSR. However, more complex models incorporating interactions between precipitation, maximum and average temperature revealed masked Temperature-Size Rule effects. The study emphasizes that TSR can be obscured by other environmental factors and their interactions. The results suggest that temperature dependent size changes may become apparent only under specific environmental conditions, particularly when precipitation levels are low. These findings highlight the importance of using large sample sizes and considering complex interactions when studying ecological rules like TSR in natural populations.
