Abstract

GONZALEZ-VALDIVIA, Noel Antonio et al. Frugivorous Nymphalidae (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) associated to an ecomosaic of agriculture and tropical rainforest in a landscape in Southeastern Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodiv. [online]. 2016, vol.87, n.2, pp.451-464. ISSN 2007-8706.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmb.2016.04.003.

We evaluated the use of coloring of frugivorous Nymphalidae as an indicator of landscape units. Four environmental matrices were taken into consideration (old secondary vegetation, young secondary vegetation, pasture and live fences) and compared to four forest units (ecological reference), in Tenosique, Tabasco, México. In each landscape unit we set up 10 Van Someren-Rydon traps for 5 days, replicating the sampling 4 times. In total 63 species were identified, with 58 in the agricultural matrix and 42 in forested units. Of the total, 37 species were shared, 21 associated to agricultural areas and 5 to the forest units. The structure of the vegetation affected the species abundance and composition, but not the butterfly richness. The communities of butterflies in pasture lands and in fallows differ > 75% of those of the forest units. There was correlation between color and preferential habitat. Tiger and transparent patterns (Danainae) prefer the closed canopy. Excepting Adelpha (Limenitidinae,) and those with bark colour (Biblidinae), all others are widely distributed in the landscape, particularly the Hamadryas type were associated with open environments. The landscape resulting from management, where forest remnants are mixed with agricultural plots and secondary vegetation in various stages of succession, seems to favor the conservation of Lepidoptera and to maintain a high diversity of frugivorous Nymphalidae.

Keywords : Butterflies; Biodiversity; Ecological indicator; Habitat preferences; Neotropics.