安徽马鞍山地区蝶类资源调查及区系分析

2003~2006年对安徽省马鞍山地区蝶类资源进行调查,经鉴定有69种,隶属于8科50属,分别为凤蝶科6属13种,绢蝶科1属1种,粉蝶科5属7种,眼蝶科4属9种,蛱蝶科10属15种,喙蝶科1属1种,灰蝶科13属14种,弄蝶科8属9种。马鞍山地区蝶类在中国动物地理区划中有20个区系型,以华中-华北区系型所占比例最高,计10种,占14.49%;其次为华中区特有种为9种,占13.14%;马鞍山地区蝶类区系主要以华中区区系为主体。     

Courtship Solicitation by Females of the Barred Sulphur Butterfly (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Eurema daira</Emphasis>) (Lepidoptera: Pieridae)

Virgin females of the subtropical pierid butterfly Eurema daira were observed to actively solicit male courtship. The resulting interactions involved both aggressive contact with male individuals and elaborate female posturing. Cage-based trials showed that there was a direct relationship between the frequency of courtship solicitation attempts and female age. Virgin females under 3 days old showed little or no interest in initiating courtship. By contrast, 23.2 percent of the virgin females over three days old actively solicited available males with peak solicitation behavior exhibited from five day old individuals.     

小兴安岭凉水自然保护区蝶类多样性

2012—2013年选取原始阔叶红松林、人工林、天然次生林和灌丛草甸4种典型植被生境,对小兴安岭凉水自然保护区的蝶类进行了系统研究。共捕获蝶类1438头,分属7科47属76种,4种植被生境中蝶类群落优势类群均为蛱蝶科,不同生境蝶类群落相似性与生境植被类型密切相关。计算分析了4种植被生境中蝶类多样性指数、物种丰富度、优势度指数、均匀度指数和种-多度关系,结果表明:3种森林生境蝶类多样性大于灌丛草甸,原始阔叶红松林蝶类具有最高的多样性指数、较高的物种丰富度、均匀度指数以及最低的优势度指数,种-多度分布为对数正态分布,说明环境质量优越,最适合蝶类生存和繁衍;灌丛草甸蝶类的多样性指数、物种丰富度和均匀度指数均为最低,而优势度指数最高,种-多度分布为对数级数分布,反映植物群落结构较单一,适合各种蝶类生存和繁衍的资源不足;天然次生林蝶类多样性指数、物种丰富度高于人工林,均匀度小于人工林,但前者种-多度分布为对数级数模型,后者为对数正态模型,说明在封山育林状态下,对森林植被组成进行适当合理的干扰,有利于森林的健康发展     

Effect of larval brain extracts derived from three swallowtail butterflies,Papilio helenus L., P. machaon L. and P. memnon L., on seasonal morph development of P. xuthus L. (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae)

Adults of the three papilionid butterflies, Papilio helenus L., Papilio machaon L. and Papilio memnon L., exhibit seasonal diphenism comprising spring and summer morphs. To elucidate the physiological mechanism underlying seasonal morph development in papilionid butterflies, we investigated whether a cerebral factor showing summer‐morph‐producing hormone (SMPH) activity is present in the brain of three Papilio species using an assay system with chilled male short‐day pupae of P. xuthus L. When 2% NaCl extracts derived from 20 larval brains of the three species were injected into abdomens of chilled male short‐day pupae of P. xuthus, all recipients destined to develop into spring‐morph adults developed into summer‐ and intermediate‐morph adults. On the other hand, all recipients injected with distilled water as a control developed into spring‐morph adults. These results indicate that a cerebral factor showing SMPH activity is present in the larval brain of the three Papilio species. Additionally, all recipients injected with 2% NaCl extracts derived from 20 adult brains of Bombyx mori L. also developed into summer‐ and intermediate‐morph adults. The results revealed that SMPH or a cerebral factor showing SMPH activity is widely distributed among lepidopteran insects.     

Polarization-based brightness discrimination in the foraging butterfly, Papilio xuthus

The human eye is insensitive to the angular direction of the light e-vector, but several animal species have the ability to discriminate differently polarized lights. How the polarization is detected is often unclear, however. Egg-laying Papilio butterflies have been shown to see false colours when presented with differently polarized lights. Here we asked whether this also holds in foraging butterflies. After training individuals to feed on nectar in front of an unpolarized spectral light, we carried out three dual-choice tests, where the discrimination of (i) the spectral content, (ii) the light intensity, and (iii) the e-vector orientation were investigated. In the first test, the butterflies selected the trained spectrum irrespective of its intensity, and in the second test they chose the light with the higher intensity. The result of the e-vector discrimination test was very similar to that of the second test, suggesting that foraging butterflies discriminate differently polarized lights as differing in brightness rather than as differing in colour. Papilio butterflies are clearly able to use at least two modes of polarization vision depending on the behavioural context.     

Midgut glycosidases activities in monophagous larvae of Apollo butterfly, Parnassius apollo ssp. frankenbergeri

Parnassius apollo (Lepidoptera, Papilionidae) declines on numerous localities all over Europe. Its local subspecies frankenbergeri, inhabiting the Pieniny Mts (southern Poland) and successfully recovered from extinction, is monophagous in larval stage. In natural conditions, it completes development on the orpine Sedum telephium ssp. maximum. Since proper quality and quantity of necessary nutritional compounds of the food plant ensure developmental success, the digestive processes in the insect midgut should reflect adaptation to a specific food source. The paper presents, for the first time, the activity of detected glycolytic enzymes in midgut tissue and liquid gut contents of the L4 and L5 instars of P. apollo larvae. alpha-Amylase plays the main role in utilization of carbohydrates, contrary to cellulase activity. Saccharase seems to be the main disaccharidase, and high activity of beta-glycosidase enables hydrolysis of the plant glycosides. Trehalase activity was unexpectedly low and comparable to those of cellobiase and lactase. alpha-Amylolytic and other glycolytic activities indicate that larvae utilize starch and other carbohydrate compounds as energy sources. Possible use of some plant allelochemicals as energy sources by Apollo larvae is discussed.     

Impacts of climate warming and habitat loss on extinctions at species' low-latitude range boundaries

Polewards expansions of species' distributions have been attributed to climate warming, but evidence for climate‐driven local extinctions at warm (low latitude/elevation) boundaries is equivocal. We surveyed the four species of butterflies that reach their southern limits in Britain. We visited 421 sites where the species had been recorded previously to determine whether recent extinctions were primarily due to climate or habitat changes. Coenonympha tullia had become extinct at 52% of study sites and all losses were associated with habitat degradation. Aricia artaxerxes was extinct from 50% of sites, with approximately one‐third to half of extinctions associated with climate‐related factors and the remainder with habitat loss. For Erebia aethiops (extinct from 24% of sites), approximately a quarter of the extinctions were associated with habitat and three‐quarters with climate. For Erebia epiphron, extinctions (37% of sites) were attributed mainly to climate with almost no habitat effects. For the three species affected by climate, range boundaries retracted 70–100 km northwards (A. artaxerxes, E. aethiops) and 130–150 m uphill (E. epiphron) in the sample of sites analysed. These shifts are consistent with estimated latitudinal and elevational temperature shifts of 88 km northwards and 98 m uphill over the 19‐year study period. These results suggest that the southern/warm range margins of some species are as sensitive to climate change as are northern/cool margins. Our data indicate that climate warming has been of comparable importance to habitat loss in driving local extinctions of northern species over the past few decades; future climate warming is likely to jeopardize the long‐term survival of many northern and mountain species.     

Butterfly communities in South Australian urban reserves: Estimating abundance and diversity using the Pollard walk

Abstract Remnant habitats within and surrounding urbanized areas are becoming increasingly important for maintaining butterfly diversity. The ‘Pollard walk’ protocol has been used widely overseas to estimate and monitor species diversity and abundance of butterflies. However, there has been limited use of this technique in Australia. Here, we used the Pollard walk method to estimate the diversity of butterflies at three urban sites around Adelaide, South Australia: Belair National Park (BNP), Shepherds Hill Recreation Park (SHRP) and Brownhill Creek Recreation Park (BCRP). In total, 21 species of butterfly were detected across the three sites. Pollard walks detected butterfly species from five families, including rare and highly localized lycaenid and hesperiid species. The highest diversity of species was found at BCRP (16) followed by BNP (14) and SHRP (14). Multivariate analysis on the data revealed a distinct and temporally variable butterfly community at BNP when compared with the SHRP and BCRP. The results of this study show that the Pollard walk can be effectively used to distinguish communities and detect a wide variety of butterflies, including cryptic and rare species, within urban habitats of Adelaide.     

Determinants of the biogeographical distribution of butterflies in boreal regions

Aim  We explored the relative contributions of climatic and land-cover factors in explaining the distribution patterns of butterflies in a boreal region.
Location  Finland, northern Europe.
Methods  Data from a national butterfly atlas survey carried out during 1991–2003, with a 10-km grain grid system, were used in these analyses. We used generalized additive models (GAM) and hierarchical partitioning (HP) to explore the main environmental correlates (climate and land-cover) of the realized niches of 98 butterfly species. The accuracy of the distribution models (GAMs) was validated by resubstitution and cross-validation approaches, using the area under the curve (AUC) derived from the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) plots.
Results  Predictive accuracies of the 98 individual environment–butterfly models varied from low to very high (cross-validated AUC values 0.48–0.99), with a mean of 0.79. The results of both the GAM and HP analyses were broadly concordant. Most of the variation in butterfly distributions is associated with growing degree-days, mean temperature of the coldest month and cover of built-up area in all six phylogenetic groups (butterfly families). There were no statistically significant differences in predictive accuracy among the different butterfly families.
Main conclusions  About three-quarters of the distributions of butterfly species in Finland appear to be governed principally by climatic, predominantly temperature-related, factors. This indicates that many butterfly species may respond rapidly to the projected climate change in boreal regions. By determining the ecological niches of multiple species, we can project their range shifts in response to changes in climate and land-cover, and identify species that are particularly sensitive to forecasted global changes.     

Assessment of indicator species of butterfly assemblages in coffee–banana farming system in central Uganda

Butterflies are believed to be important pollinators because they are nectar/pollen feeders of both wild and cultivated plant species occurring in natural and managed systems. However, there exist very little knowledge about their spatio‐temporal distribution and diversity in agricultural systems of Sub‐Sahara Africa and in Uganda. There are no protocols to monitor the status of good pollinator species in these systems. The main aim of this study was to collect baseline information about indicator species of butterfly community in coffee–banana farming systems of central Uganda. Data were collected for 1 year (2006) using banana fruit‐bait traps, transect walk‐and‐counts and hand‐nets sampling methods. Indicator species of farmland habitats were identified using indicator value method. Species that emerged as significant (P < 0.05) suitable indicators were Catopsilia florella, Junonia sophia, Bicyclus safitza, Acraea acerata, Eurema hecabe, Ypthima albida, Zizula hylax, Acraea ventura, Eurema brigitta, Neptidopsis ophione, Junonia eonone, Zizeeria kynsna, Cupidopsis cissus, Junonia chorimene and Acrae uvui. These ubiquitous species were recommended to monitoring programmes as indicator species of butterfly communities delivering pollination services to cultivated and wild plants in farmland environments of central Uganda. Transect count was proposed as the best sampling technique to monitor butterfly species that may be involved in successful pollination activities in farmlands. There is a need to develop strategies to protect linear and nonlinear natural and semi‐natural habitats to offer sufficient refugia and breeding sites to butterflies inhabiting farmlands.