Rainfall but not selective logging affect changes in abundance of a tropical forest butterfly in Sabah, Borneo

Abstract

eprints@whiterose.ac.uk https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/ Reuse Unless indicated otherwise, fulltext items are protected by copyright with all rights reserved. The copyright exception in section 29 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 allows the making of a single copy solely for the purpose of non-commercial research or private study within the limits of fair dealing. The publisher or other rights-holder may allow further reproduction and re-use of this version -refer to the White Rose Research Online record for this item. Where records identify the publisher as the copyright holder, users can verify any specific terms of use on the publisher's website. TakedownIf you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing eprints@whiterose.ac.uk including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request. Journal of Tropical Ecology Abstract:We investigated the effects of rainfall on the distribution and abundance of the satyrine butterfly Ragadia makuta in selectively logged and unlogged forest on Borneo. In 1997-98, there was a severe El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) drought, and annual surveys over a 4-y period showed that abundance of R. makuta was greatly reduced during the drought, but that populations quickly recovered after it. Monthly surveys over a 12-mo period of typical rainfall showed that high rainfall in the month preceding surveys significantly reduced butterfly abundance. Butterfly abundance and distribution did not differ between selectively logged and unlogged areas in either monthly or annual surveys and there was no difference between selectively logged and unlogged areas in the pattern of post-drought recovery. These results indicate that the abundance of R. makuta was significantly reduced both after high rainfall and during severe drought, but that these impacts were short-lived and were not affected by habitat disturbance. ENSO droughts on Borneo naturally often lead to widespread forest fires and thus impacts of ENSO events for butterflies are more likely to be due to indirect effects of habitat loss, rather than direct effects of drought on butterfly population dynamics.

Butterfly Species Richness in Selected West Albertine Rift Forests

“…This is in agreement with a study by Hill et al [22] on tropical butterfly communities which found that these were diverse communities with many endemic species dependent on closed-canopy forests. This is because closed-canopy forests create microhabitats which are suitable for the butterflies.…”

Seasonal diversity of butterflies and their larval food plants in the surroundings of upper Neora Valley National Park, a sub-tropical broad leaved hill forest in the eastern Himalayan landscape, West Bengal, India

“…For instance, tropical butterflies have been shown to be sensitive to seasonal changes in rainfall (Barby 1995;Hill et al 2003). Wynter-Blyth (1957) documented 835 species from the eastern Himalaya in sharp contrast to only 415 species from the western Himalaya.…”

Temporal Occurrence of TwoMorphoButterflies (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae): Influence of Weather and Food Resources

“…Cerrado, could explain a large portion of the temporal variation in Satyrinae abundance (Braby 1995;Hill et al 2003;Ribeiro & Freitas 2011).…”