Title
Butterfly species richness and abundance in the Katavi ecosystem of western Tanzania
Author(s)
Fitzherbert E., Gardner T., Davenport T.R.B., Caro T.
Published
2006
Publisher
African Journal of Ecology
Abstract
We sampled butterflies in six different habitat types in and around Katavi National Park, a remote reserve consisting primarily of miombo woodland and seasonal lakes in western Tanzania. Blendon traps set for 531 trap days and 143 h of butterfly netting at 35 sites yielded 186 species from five families over a 4-month period during the wet season. Eight of these species constituted possible range extensions. Butterfly abundance and species richness were low in cultivated habitats but high in open riverine habitats; many butterfly species were found only in seasonally flooded grassland. This study constitutes the first butterfly species inventory from this poorly-known national park, shows that protection of dry season water sources provides an important conservation service for invertebrates as well as large mammals, and that increased cultivation outside miombo parks can reduce local butterfly diversity. © 2006 The Authors.
Keywords
abundance; butterfly; conservation; dry season; flooding; grassland; habitat type; lake ecosystem; national park; reserve design; species richness; trap (equipment); water resource; woodland; Africa; East Africa; Katavi National Park; Rukwa; Sub-Saharan Africa; Tanzania; Invertebrata; Mammalia; Papilionoidea
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PUB10827