Butterflies and habitat corridors

Chris J. Durden drdn at mail.utexas.edu
Tue Jun 15 02:47:39 EDT 1999


  In predominanly or primevally forested regions like the SE US butterfly
congregation can be enhanced by creating artificial openings in the forest.
In primevally open areas like much of the W US butterflies are attracted to
the edge of bushes or woods. In a dry area they are attracted to moisture.
  Speaking for my own region in Central Texas, we just have to add water to
natural openings in woodland, or add water to bushes planted in open areas
- to enhance our butterfly populations. Butterflies like edges. Give them
some.
...........Chris Durden



At 11:00  15/06/99 PDT, you wrote:
>What about butterflies that like a wooded (and moist) habitat?  I see more 
>butterflies along stream beds... mostly wooded than I ever do in open 
>fields.  I realise the article suggests that the butterflies studied (not 
>all butterflies) perfer an open habitat but I would hate for anyone to take 
>this article the wrong way and begin cutting down trees just to "create" 
>corridors.
>
>Laurel
>from the sludge lagoons of San Jose, CA
>
>
>>From: Danfosha at aol.com
>>Reply-To: Danfosha at aol.com
>>To: LEPS-L at lists.yale.edu
>>Subject: Butterflies and habitat corridors
>>Date: Tue, 15 Jun 1999 12:27:34 EDT
>>
>><http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jun99/1999L-06-10-09.html>
>>
>>BUTTERFLIES BENEFIT FROM WILDLIFE CORRIDORS
>>
>>Wildlife corridors linking distant areas can benefit species that rely on
>>patches of fragmented habitat, two new studies show. The studies may help
>>scientists and land managers design more effective corridors. Research at 
>>the
>>Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina found that
>>butterflies are more likely to move between habitat patches that are close
>>together or linked by corridors than between widely scattered patches. The
>>butterflies studied need open habitat and vegetation, and were unlikely to
>>travel across wooded areas to reach distant open spaces. More open habitat
>>butterflies were present in patches linked by corridors than in similar but
>>isolated patches. "Corridors are often designed with the thought that they
>>benefit all species living in a given habitat," says researcher Nick 
>>Haddad.
>>"Because habitat restricted species are most often threatened by
>>fragmentation, corridors should be effective tools in conservation." The
>>studies are in the current issue of the journal "Ecological Applications,"
>>published by the Ecological Society of America.
>>
>>
>
>
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