Morphometric variability of specimens in Ground Beetle (Carabidae) communities in agrarian landscape forests and protected areas

The change in the morphometric variable of ground beetles as well as in their volume (ellipsoidal biovol-ume) indicates the state of the biotope (unstable, stable), which is affected by anthropogenic activity such as forestry, agriculture and urbanisation. Between the years 2020 and 2022, we conducted research in flood-plain forests, which were located in agriculturally used land and in the important European territory of Du-najské Luhy Protected Landscape Area. Using the pitfall traps method, we recorded 1319 individuals be-longing to 29 species of ground beetles in six study areas representing two types of habitats (willow-poplar floodplain forest and regenerated poplar forest). We confirmed the largest average Ellipsoid Biovolume (EV) in the species Carabus coriaceus L. (2936 mm3), Carabus scheidleri Panzer (1427 mm3), Carabus vio-laceus L. (943 mm3), Carabus granulatus L. (366 mm3), Cychrus caraboides (L.) (336 mm3), Pterostichus niger (Schaller) (254 mm3), Harpalus rufipes (DeGeer) (123 mm3). The redundancy analysis confirmed the predominance of apterous and brachypterous species of ground beetles in forest stands in the Dunajské Luhy PLA (important European territory). These groups of Carabidae point to the ecological stability of bio-topes, because they inhabit habitats where they have optimum food. On the contrary, we confirmed the pre-dominance of macropterous species in forest biotopes in agrarian landscape conditions, which points to bi-otopes cyclically disturbed by anthropogenic activity. We recorded larger individuals in groups of apterous and brachypterous species in forest stands in the conditions of the Dunajské Luhy PLA. Larger macropter-ous individuals were recorded in forest stands in agrarian landscape conditions. In order to preserve forest habitats of European importance, it is necessary to know the ecological interactions between the ecosystem and ground beetles.