Mesovoid Shallow Substratum – its importance for biodiversity

• Autor(a) principal: Eusébio, Rita P.
• Data de Publicação: 2024
• Outros Autores: Reboleira, Ana
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: https://doi.org/10.34624/captar.v12i0.33454

The Mesovoid Shallow Substratum (MSS) is a type of subterranean habitat close to the surface and rich in invertebrate fauna.  It is composed of a network of fissures and small spaces filled with air between rocky fragments. The faunal communities found in the MSS vary geographically and temporally, and include mostly surface and subterranean invertebrates. From an ecological point of view, the MSS is a climatic refuge, but also a permanent habitat for a wide variety of invertebrate species, and can act as a biogeographical corridor for subterranean species. It is therefore a very relevant habitat in the context of climate change. There is a great lack of knowledge about the geographic distribution of this habitat and about the diversity and ecology of faunal communities. This article presents a perspective on the MSS, its ecological characteristics, typologies, fauna and on the challenges of its conservation.