Diversity of Butterflies (Lepidoptera) across rainforest transformation systems in Bukit Duabelas and Harapan Forest, Jambi
In 2017, Rawati Panjaitan collected 5171 butterfly specimen belonging to 209 species on EFForTS core plots and riparian sites. Using direct surveys and scan samplings, butterflies were recorded, photographed, and identified in the field. Species unable to identified on site were caught by sweep netting and preserved for subsequent analysis in the lab. Among the butterflies recorded this way were IUCN protected species such as the Malay birdwing Troides amphrysus and Raja Brooke’s birdwing Trogonoptera brookiana (Figure 1). There are significantly more species of butterfly in forest (Nsp = 47.1 ± 7.7) and jungle rubber (Nsp = 39 ± 8) than in monoculture rubber (Nsp = 26.1 ± 9.1) and oil palm (Nsp = 33.4 ± 9.7, all values mean ± SD, Figure 2a). Simpson’s diversity index declined significantly from forest to the monocultures, with jungle rubber having an intermediate position (Figure 2a). The communities were much more similar among all land use systems than in the ants, parasitoids or beetles, while still differing significantly from each other (Figure 2b). A likely explanation for this pattern is the presence/absence of host plants for certain butterfly species. Especially for the rare and protected species, there are no suitable host plants in the monocultures, restricting those species to the less disturbed forest of Bukit Duabelas National Park. A manuscript is currently in preparation which focuses on the impact of land use on butterfly species richness and diversity, and which will compare the butterfly communities of riparian sites with those of the core plots. Rawati Panjaitan will collect specimen in the B11 Biodiversity Enrichment Experiment in late dry season 2018.
Figure 2. Community measures of butterflies in rainforest (F), rungle rubber (J), rubber (R) and oil palm plantations (O) in Jambi Province. We calculated (a) average species richness Nsp and inverse Simpson diversity 1/D and compared averages with ANOVA followed by pairwise t-tests using Holm’s correction. Different letters indicate significant differences (all p<0.0001). We then used DFA ordination (b) to analyse community composition. P-values below α=0.05 indicate a significant discrimination between communities of different land use systems.
Diversity of butterflies (Lepidoptera) caught by using fruit traps in Bukit duabelas and Harapan Forest landscape, Jambi. (Panjaitan et al. 2019)