Determining the long-term habitat preferences of the Duke of Burgundy butterfly, Hamearis lucina, on a chalk grassland reserve in the UK

Abstract

The Duke of Burgundy butterfly has undergone considerable range contractions across Europe and since the 1970s has lost around 84% of its former distribution in the UK. Despite its endangered status, the butterfly is understudied, with few papers directly investigating its habitat requirements. This limited research effort focusses on the larval life stage, with relatively little being known about the adults of the species. In this study, we investigated the habitat usage of both adults and larvae of the Duke of Burgundy. Fieldwork was carried out in association with the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire (BCN) Wildlife Trust on their Totternhoe Quarry Reserve in Bedfordshire. Using data collected over the course of a decade, we performed the first long term distribution analysis of the species and we identified habitat attributes associated with long-standing abundance hotspots of both adults and larvae on the reserve. We found both life stages to be conserved in their range, remaining in the same small areas of Totternhoe Quarry year on year, with adults often being more restricted in their distribution than larvae. Sheltered locations were important for both life stages, but small differences in habitat preference, such as slope and aspect, were also identified. These results emphasise the need to target management towards both life stages of the Duke of Burgundy, as supporting the larvae alone may not result in suitable environmental conditions for the adults.

How butterflies keep their cool: Physical and ecological traits influence thermoregulatory ability and population trends

“…The Duke of Burgundy H. lucina has an early spring flight season (late April to late May; Thomas & Lewington, 2016), but is reliant upon warm, sheltered habitat patches for male territory defence (Hayes et al., 2019; Turner et al., 2009). However, beyond its choice of microhabitat, our data indicate that the Duke of Burgundy H. lucina may have very poor buffering ability, which could explain why populations of this species seem particularly sensitive to habitat management changes that could influence the local microclimate (Hayes et al., 2018; Turner et al., 2009).…”

Consistent oviposition preferences of the Duke of Burgundy butterfly over 14 years on a chalk grassland reserve in Bedfordshire, UK

“…Throughout the surveys, we were conservative as to which plants were recorded, choosing only those which showed unambiguous Duke of Burgundy larval damage. Our criteria for inclusion followed the methods of Hayes et al ( 2018 ) and were as follows: 1) plant damage had to be concentrated in the centre of the leaves, with the majority of veins, midribs and leaf edges remaining intact; 2) plants had to display a progression of increasing hole sizes, produced as larvae grew and moved away from the leaf where eggs were oviposited. When damage was found, measurements of the plant and its surrounding habitat attributes were recorded, following Turner et al ( 2009 ).…”

“…Finally, we assessed the overall degree of shelter within close proximity of the plant using a five-point scale, with a shelter value of one signifying that all cardinal directions (north, east, south and west) were open and free from a barrier at one metre height for at least five metres, but a shelter value of five signifying that all four points of the compass were obstructed within this distance. A barrier could consist of any solid obstruction and included woody vegetation or steep banks (Turner et al 2009 ; Hayes et al 2018 ). Finally, in 2016, a photograph of each plant was taken from above, alongside a numbered scale bar, allowing us to calculate plant size (surface area) using ImageJ visual processing software (ImageJ 2020 ) and a Wacom Intuos pro (PTH-851) drawing tablet.…”

“…The choice of oviposition location by adult female butterflies can be subject to strong selection pressure, as their relatively immobile larvae rely almost completely on female site selection to determine their chances of survival (Chew 1977 ; García-Barros and Fartmann 2009 ; Beyer and Schultz 2010 ) and butterflies commonly have distributions closely linked to that of their larval foodplants (Dennis et al 2004 ). However, foodplant abundance is only one of many factors affecting butterfly range, and foodplants are often far more widespread than the species they support (Dennis and Shreeve 1991 ; Dennis et al 2005 ; Turner et al 2009 ; Hayes et al 2018 ). Indeed, many butterfly populations have become extinct in locations where their foodplants are still abundant (Butterflies Under Threat Team 1986 ).…”

“…The Duke of Burgundy butterfly ( Hamearis lucina ) is one such species that has extremely specific larval habitat requirements (Sparks et al 1994 ; Fartmann 2006 ; Anthes et al 2008 ; Turner et al 2009 ; Goodenough and Sharp 2016 ). Its larvae are narrowly oligophagous, and eggs are laid only on plants of the genus Primula , with variation in plant quality rendering a large proportion unsuitable for oviposition (Nakonieczny and Kedziorski 2005 ; Anthes et al 2008 ; Hayes et al 2018 ). Indeed, female Duke of Burgundy often oviposit on plants that already have conspecific eggs present on them, despite other unoccupied Primula plants being present nearby.…”