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Distribution and habitats of Phengaris (Maculinea) butterflies and population ecology of Phengaris teleius in China

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Abstract

Many species of the butterfly genus Phengaris are regarded as endangered in many parts of their distribution. Several species are also widely distributed across northern China. Due to land use change and overgrazing, their habitats are declining and many patches have been lost. This paper investigates the distribution and habitats of the Chinese Phengaris species (of the subgenus Maculinea). Shrub-grassland near forests seem the most frequent habitat for Phengaris, while flat open grasslands are mostly over-grazed and thus survival for Phengaris butterflies there seems difficult. Throughout Europe, P. teleius is an endangered species, while there is still no information on its status in China. To improve the knowledge on the population ecology of P. teleius, its population structure, adult behaviour and movement were studied through mark–release–recapture methods in the Qinling Mountains of Taibai County. Eight grassland patches which were potentially suitable were found in the area in 2013. In total, 480 individuals (274 females) were marked, resulting in an overall recapture rate of 16 %. The average daily population size was 44 butterflies (±23 SD) during the adult flight period. Sixty-seven percent of the females and 38 % of the males moved less than 50 m, and 17 % of recaptured females and 38 % of males moved more than 200 m. The mean movement distance was 107 ± 177 m for males and 182 ± 122 m for females. The majority of the recaptures (86 %) were made within the patches, only a few individuals (14 %) moved between patches. Due to human disturbance and destruction, all of the eight potentially suitable patches are becoming smaller and increasingly isolated, thus these populations of P. teleius may face an increasing risk of extinction, which may well be a tip of the iceberg of habitat loss and fragmentation of P. teleius in Taibai County and possibly beyond. Hence we hope our initial study of P. teleius could have positive impacts on the conservation of Phengaris butterflies in China.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Public Welfare Research Institutes Foundation General Project of CRAES (No. 2010kyyw12): Impact of habitat loss on butterfly communities and rare species conservation on the southern slope of Qinling Mountains.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biodiversity Research Centre, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Science, Beijing, 100012, China

    Ke Gao & Xiushan Li

  2. Key Laboratory of Plant Protection Resources and Pest Management of Ministry of Education, Entomological Museum of Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, China

    Ke Gao & Fangying Chen

  3. The Xinxiang Academy of Agriculture Sciences, Xinxiang, 453000, Henan, China

    Zhenying Guo

  4. Department of Community Ecology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, 06120, Halle, Germany

    Josef Settele

  5. iDiv, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Deutscher Platz 5e, 04103, Leipzig, Germany

    Josef Settele

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  1. Ke Gao
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Correspondence to Xiushan Li.

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Gao, K., Li, X., Chen, F. et al. Distribution and habitats of Phengaris (Maculinea) butterflies and population ecology of Phengaris teleius in China. J Insect Conserv 20, 1–10 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-015-9834-x

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