Increasing patch area, proximity of human settlement and larval food plants positively affect the occurrence and local population size of the habitat specialist butterfly Polyommatus coridon (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) in fragmented calcareous grasslands

Title:

Increasing patch area, proximity of human settlement and larval food plants positively affect the occurrence and local population size of the habitat specialist butterfly Polyommatus coridon (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) in fragmented calcareous grasslands

Creator:

Rosin, Zuzana M., Skórka, Piotr, Lenda, Magdalena, Moroń, Dawid, Sparks, Tim H., and Tryjanowski, Piotr

Identifier:

https://cdk.lib.cas.cz/client/handle/uuid:0cbe0038-0a63-4c5d-8b77-837e43df2400
uuid:0cbe0038-0a63-4c5d-8b77-837e43df2400

Subject:

Zoologie, entomologie, habitat fragmentation, Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae, Polyommatus coridon, metapopulation, patch occupancy, 2, and 59

Type:

article, články, model:article, and TEXT

Description:

Which factors influence the occurrence, population size and density of species in fragmented habitat patches are key questions in population and conservation ecology. Metapopulation theory predicts that larger and less isolated habitat patches should positively influence species occurrence and population size. However, recent studies have shown that habitat quality, human activity and permeability of the landscape surrounding habitat patches may be also important. In this paper we test the relative effects of habitat patch characteristics, human settlement and landscape permeability on the occurrence, local population size and density of the Chalk-hill Blue Polyommatus coridon a charismatic butterfly inhabiting calcareous grasslands in a fragmented landscape in southern Poland. Patch occupancy rate (corrected for the butterfly detection probability) was 0.45. Habitat patch area, proximity of human settlement and cover of larval food plants positively affected occurrence of the Chalk-hill Blue. Local population size of the Chalk-hill Blue was positively affected by patch area and proximity of human settlement, and negatively by patch isolation. Local density was higher in patches located close to human settlement. Our study is one of the few showing a positive effect of human settlement on a grassland specialist butterfly although the mechanism hidden behind this phenomenon is unknown and requires further examination. In order to maintain local populations of the Chalk-hill Blue in southern Poland, conservation action should be focused on large, closely connected calcareous grasslands. Moreover, extensive management of this habitat should be maintained by local inhabitants who are better placed to undertake such work. and Zuzanna M. ROSIN, Piotr SKÓRKA, Magdalena LENDA, Dawid MORON, Tim H. SPARKS, Piotr TRYJANOWSKI.

Language:

English

Rights:

http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/
policy:public

Source:

European Journal of Entomology | 2011 Volume:108 | Number:1

Harvested from:

CDK

Metadata only:

false