Rotterdam

Abstract

Rotterdam is located on the west coast of continental Europe. It is the second largest city in The Netherlands and occupies almost 320 km2, of which a little less than 115 km2 is water. Rotterdam has a maritime temperate climate with a mild winter, a mean annual precipitation of 815 mm and a mean annual temperature of 10 C. The average wind speed is 5 m/s. The dominant soil types are sand, sea clay and peat. This chapter is based on records of invertebrates that occurred within the boundaries of Rotterdam from 1 January 1980 until now. The chapter describes the Decapoda (in particular, the crayfish and crab families), 23 species; Diptera, Stratiomyidae (soldierflies), 17 species; Diptera, Syrphidae (hoverflies), 120 species; Heteroptera eaquaticaf (bugs.aquatic families), 31 species; Hymenoptera, Apidae s.L. (bees), 94 species; Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), 35 and 1034 species, respectively; Mollusca (terrestrial and non-marine aquatic molluscs), 68 and 49 species; Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies), a total of 36 taxa; Orthoptera (grasshoppers and crickets), a total of 24 taxa. The figures include migrants, non-native species and vagrants. The species-richness of these groups of invertebrates is discussed and related to factors such as geomorphologicalfeatures, geographical position and land use.