Dermestid beetles in 'Evolution Canyon', Lower Nahal Oren, Mt. Carmel, including new records for Israel

Fifteen species of dermestid beetles were recorded at 'Evolution Canyon' (EC), Lower Nahal Oren, Mt. Carmel, Israel. They represent ∼35% of known Israeli dermestid species. The following three species were recorded for the first time in Israel: Trogoderma syriaca Dalla Torre, 1911; Ctesias syriaca Ganglbauer, 1904; and Anthrenus (s. str.) jordanicus Pic, 1934. Adults of 13 species were collected on the more solar radiated, warmer and climatically more fluctuating south-facing slope (SFS); ten species were collected on the opposite, north-facing slope (NFS), which was cooler and climatically more stable. The abundance of adult dermestid beetles was 1.9 times higher on the SFS than on the NFS (86 and 47, respectively). Species richness and abundance distribution at EC (three collecting stations on each slope and one at the valley bottom) were significantly negatively correlated with the plant cover that consisted of trees and bushes (Spearman r_s, P = 0.007 and 0.039, respectively) and perennials (Spearman r_s, P = 0.039 and 0.077, respectively), indicating that non-woody plants were preferred by adult dermestid beetles.