Species community structures of Afrotropical butterflies differ depending on the monitoring method

Habel, Jan Christian; Ulrich, Werner; Eberle, Jonas; Schmitt, Thomas

doi:10.1007/s10531-021-02332-2

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 44 publications

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“…Thus, population densities of afro‐tropical butterfly species decrease and distances travelled increase significantly in times of scarce resource availability (e.g., flowers, fruits, water) but they show high population densities and high site fidelity during rainy seasons (Habel et al, 2018; Schmitt et al, 2020). During this time, flowers, water ponds and ripe fruits are available throughout the landscape and thus there is no need to disperse over larger distances (Habel et al, 2022). In our study, however, we observed only slight changes in population dynamics of the two savannah species (but not of the two forest species) over time as possible reaction to seasonality.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat specialisation and resource availability determine dispersal behaviour in four afro‐tropical butterflies

Habel,

Milidakis,

Lindorfer

et al. 2023

Ecological Entomology

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Ecological demands, such as sex and environmental conditions, determine species' behaviour, such as dispersal, and shape local population structures. However, only marginal knowledge of these factors exists for afro‐tropical insects so far. Therefore, we performed a mark–release–recapture study in the coastal region of Kenya over a period of 2 months, covering the dry and the rainy seasons. As study species, we used four co‐occurring but ecologically diverging butterfly species, the forest species Bicyclus safitza and Junonia natalica and the savannah species Junonia oenone and Byblia ilithyia. The study area represents an ecosystem mosaic consisting of anthropogenic habitats as well as natural forest and savannah, assessed by detailed landscape mapping. We obtained 1701 capture events, comprising 1224 individuals with an overall recapture rate of 24% (ranging from 15% to 48%). The analyses based on these results allowed an assessment of the population ecology, dispersal behaviour and habitat preferences of these species. Demographic models inferred different patterns of population dynamics among species. All species preferred the habitats they were known for. The observed dispersal distances were rather low ranging from a mean of 25 to 72 m, referring to taxa and sexes. The dispersal extrapolations were unreliably low for the negative exponential function, while the values for inverse power function were credible. The latter predicted a considerably higher long‐distance dispersal capacity in males than in females of the forest species B. safitza and J. natalica, while females dispersed more than males in the savannah species J. oenone and B. ilithyia. Our results obtained from these four ecologically diverging afro‐tropical butterfly species underline that species’ behaviour, such as dispersal, is strongly determined by habitat preferences, sex and the availability of resources.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat specialisation and resource availability determine dispersal behaviour in four afro‐tropical butterflies

Habel,

Milidakis,

Lindorfer

et al. 2023

Ecological Entomology

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Agroforestry orchards support greater butterfly diversity than monoculture plantations in the tropics

et al. 2023

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Population ecology and behaviour of two Afrotropical forest butterflies

et al. 2023

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Over the last decades, numerous natural habitats have been converted into settlement areas, agricultural land, and tree plantations on a large spatial scale. As a result, natural ecosystems have been destroyed. In consequence, many ecosystems exist today as small and geographically isolated remnants. To what extent the original species diversity can persist in such small habitat patches is questionable and strongly depends on the ecology of the species. A prominent example of severe habitat destruction are the species-rich tropical cloud forests of Taita Hills in southern Kenya, which have been deforested almost completely during past decades. However, there still exist typical forest species in the few remaining forest fragments. In this study, we investigate the population ecology and behaviour of two butterfly species present in the cloud forest remnants of Taita Hills, Protogoniomorpha parhassus and Precis tugela. Over a period of one month, we conducted Mark-Release-Recapture to study population sizes and demographic structures, lifespan, dispersal, and behaviour. We found that both species exhibited medium population sizes and are sedentary. However, some individuals performed dispersal throughout the forest. The behaviour of the two species differs: While P. tugela was mostly observed basking with open wings, P. parhassus was mostly sitting under leaves with closed wings. The life span was rather long for butterflies. Implications for insect conservation This study documents the population ecology and behaviour of these two Afrotropical butterflies and underlines the relevance of the conservation of cloud forest remnants to preserve species, which mainly depends on these habitat remnants.

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Species community structures of Afrotropical butterflies differ depending on the monitoring method

Cited by 4 publications

References 44 publications

Habitat specialisation and resource availability determine dispersal behaviour in four afro‐tropical butterflies

Habitat specialisation and resource availability determine dispersal behaviour in four afro‐tropical butterflies

Agroforestry orchards support greater butterfly diversity than monoculture plantations in the tropics

Population ecology and behaviour of two Afrotropical forest butterflies

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