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VOL. 9, ISSUE 9 (2024)
A report on butterfly diversity and abundance of Alipore Zoological Garden, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Authors
Mousumi Das, Madhurima Sen, Srija Gan
Abstract
Butterflies, the indicator species are used as a tool for monitoring
the health of a habitat as their diversity and abundance reflect the impact of
urbanization in an area. The current study was undertaken to estimate the
diversity and abundance of butterfly fauna in Alipore Zoological Garden,
Kolkata India. A total number of 72 butterfly species of 6 families and 52
genera were recorded over a period of one year from August, 2023 to July, 2024.
Among 72 butterfly species, 29 species belonged to family Nymphalidae, 14
species to Lycaenidae, 7 species to Papilionidae, 13 species to Pieridae, 8
species to Hesperiidae and 1 species to Riodinidae. Nymphalidae was the most
predominant family owing to their species richness, whereas the family Pieridae
(37.41%) was found to dominate over Nymphalidae (36.70%), Lycaenidae (16.10%),
Papilionidae (7.80%), Hesperiidae (1.92%) and Riodinidae (0.08%). Based on the
sightings of the butterfly species in the study site, 66.13% butterflies of the
population were under the category very common (VC), 22.28% under common (C)
category, 10.58% under not rare (NR) category, 0.96% under rare (R) category
and 0.05% under very rare (VR) category. A total number of 14 species of the
documented butterflies are legally protected under Wildlife Protection Act,
1972. The results of different diversity indices, Shannon’s index (H’=3.96),
Pielou’s evenness index (J=0.92) and Simpson’s index of diversity (D=0.02)
showed that the butterfly fauna in the study area was highly diverse with even
distribution and high abundance. Findings from this study is expected to
provide useful documentation regarding the butterfly fauna in the vegetation of
Alipore Zoological Garden, Kolkata and similar geographic areas which in turn
are helpful towards the conservation of habitats.
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Pages:52-61
How to cite this article:
Mousumi Das, Madhurima Sen, Srija Gan "A report on butterfly diversity and abundance of Alipore Zoological Garden, Kolkata, West Bengal, India". International Journal of Entomology Research, Vol 9, Issue 9, 2024, Pages 52-61
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