Species richness of anthophilous butterflies of an Atlantic Forest fragment in Southeastern Brazil

Abstract

RESUMO Riqueza de espécies de borboletas antófilas de um fragmento de Mata Atlântica no Sudeste do BrasilOs objetivos do presente trabalho foram identificar borboletas antófilas em flores psicófilas de quatro espécies de Asteraceae em um fragmento de Floresta Atlântica, no município de Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Sudeste brasileiro, e determinar se existem espécies de borboletas em comum com outros levantamentos Species richness of anthophilous butterflies of an Atlantic Forest fragment in Southeastern BrazilThe objectives of this study were to identify anthophilous butterflies on psychophilous flowers of four Asteraceae species in an Atlantic Forest fragment in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Southeastern Brazil, and to determine whether there are species in common with other lepidopteran inventories of the Southeastern and Midwestern regions of Brazil. It is the first inventory of anthophilous butterflies of a semideciduous forest fragment in Zona da Mata, State of Minas Gerais. A total of 108 species were recorded, representing the fourth largest lepidopteran survey in this State. The results demonstrated that Asteraceae species may be important tools for monitoring anthophilous butterflies. The similarity with other inventories ranged from 1 to 92.55%. Fifteen species were reported for the first time in the State of Minas Gerais, and among them, Melanis alena and Thisbe irenea were observed in this study only.

Butterfly fauna (Lepidoptera, Papilionoidea) in an ecotone between two biodiversity hotspots in Minas Gerais, Brazil

“…Among the species sampled in the PESRM, Hypoleria lavinia (Hewitson, [1855]) was known, until now, only from the Parque Estadual do Rio Doce (Silva et al, 2010) and from Viçosa (Cruz et al, 2012), both in the core of the Atlantic Rainforest, in the state of Minas Gerais. This is, therefore, a new record for the Quadrilátero Ferrífero.…”

Life history ofAdenostemma brasilianum(Pers.) Cass. (Eupatorieae, Asteraceae): A psychophilous herbaceous species of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest understory1

“…At the study site, 108 species of anthophilous butterflies were recorded, including 23 Nymphalidae: Ithomiinae species (Cruz et al 2012). Male Ithomiinae (18 species; Godinho 2007, Cruz et al 2012, were captured on A. brasilianum flowers, which secrete nectar containing PAs (Brown 1984a).…”

“…Male Ithomiinae (18 species; Godinho 2007, Cruz et al 2012, were captured on A. brasilianum flowers, which secrete nectar containing PAs (Brown 1984a). These male insects are pollinators of this Asteraceae (Godinho 2007) and use PAs, for example, as a precursor in the synthesis of pheromones, which are fundamental for the mating success (Brown 1984a, b).…”