The Diversity and Composition of Insect Communities in Urban Forest Fragments Near Panama City

Fragments of urban forests can host a remarkable diversity of insects, even in environments that have been greatly transformed. This study evaluates the diversity, abundance and composition of insects that belong to seven families in four urban forest fragments near Panama City, i.e., Ciudad del Saber (CDS), Parque Natural Metropolitano (PNM), Corozal (COR) and Albrook (ALB). A total of 2,038 individuals were collected via Malaise traps and categorized into 403 morphospecies, 75 genera and 43 subfamilies. The highest richness of morphospecies was observed in CDS (223), whereas PNM exhibited the highest abundance of individuals (862). The alpha diversity indices (Shannon‒Wiener> 4.3; Margalef> 21; Pielou ≈ 1.0; and Simpson's inverse> 0.95) reflected communities that were characterized by high levels of diversity and equity. The level of similarity observed among the fragments was moderate (Diserud-Odegaard index = 0.543), thus indicating differences among the sites evaluated as part of this research in terms of their taxonomic composition. These results provide evidence concerning the variability of entomological communities in tropical urban landscapes and the role of forest fragments as possible reservoirs of biodiversity.