How life history affects threat status: Requirements of two Onobrychis-feeding lycaenid butterflies, Polyommatus damon and Polyommatus thersites, in the Czech Republic

Abstract

Comparisons of related species differing in conservation status may offer insights into causes of species declines. We studied egg-laying patterns and landscape occupancy of two sympatric lycaenidae butterflies inhabiting xeric grasslands, vulnerable Polyommatus thersites and critically endangered Polyommatus [Agrodiaetus] damon, both developing on sainfoin, Onobrychis spp. Females of bivoltine P. thersites oviposit on host plant leaves at a relatively low height (≈20 cm), in both spring (May-June) and summer (July-August) generations. Females of univoltine P. damon (July-September) oviposit to senescing inflorescences, in significantly higher heights (>30 cm), and the species is hence vulnerable to summer mowing or grazing. On a landscape scale, both species tended to occur at sites with diverse sward management, including temporarily unmanaged patches. In addition, P. damon occurred only in the proximity of other occupied sites. The study documents that grassland management must respect the needs of the most vulnerable species, and because these needs are seldom known, it must maintain a high diversity of conditions within individual sites.

Co-occurrence of threeAristolochia-feeding Papilionids(Archon apollinus, Zerynthia polyxenaandZerynthia cerisy)in Greek Thrace

“…Analyses of butterfly oviposition preferences with regard to host plant conditions may provide guidance for conservation management (e.g. Jansen et al 2012;Šlancarová et al 2012). Due to sequential phenology, however, the system described in this paper does not present an ideal time for studying immature distributionany recording date would be too early or too late for some butterflyplant interactions.…”

Improving knowledge of the subgenus Agrodiaetus (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae: Polyommatus) in Eastern Europe: Overview of the Romanian fauna

“…It was, for example, reported as extinct from Poland (where it occurred locally in the south-east) (Buszko & Masłowski, 2008), as near extinct (critically endangered) in the Czech Republic (Beneš et al, 2002;Šlancarová et al, 2012) and as also declining in Germany (Ebert & Rennwald, 1991;Nässig et al, 2004). In fact, according to Van Swaay et al (2010), P. damon is near threatened in Europe.…”

How universal are reserve design rules? A test using butterflies and their life history traits

“…Even closely related species may differ in the degree of their association with the reserve‐protected habitats – from species entirely depending on the reserve‐protected habitats to those utilising the non‐protected matrix and occurring in a reserve only by chance. Limiting the focus to threatened species numbers does not help much either, because the causes of threats may vary among species, including closely related ones (Slancarova et al ) and because threatened species may vary in their perceptions of habitats (e.g. forest interior vs edge specialists) (Tingley et al , Jeppsson and Forslund ).…”

“…Because reserves rarely exist in isolation (Laurance 2008) and species occurring in reserves may also utilise the surrounding non-protected 'matrix' (Ricketts 2001), the habitats and landscape heterogeneity structure surrounding individual reserves affect the species richness and composition within the reserves (Dennis 2004, Slancarova et al 2014). This applies, in particular, for overexploited human-dominated landscapes, in which vary among species, including closely related ones (Slancarova et al 2012) and because threatened species may vary in their perceptions of habitats (e.g. forest interior vs edge specialists) (Tingley et al 2013, Jeppsson andForslund 2014).…”