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The Chalk-hill Blue Polyommatus coridon (Lycaenidae, Lepidoptera) in a highly fragmented landscape: How sedentary is a sedentary butterfly?

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Abstract

The habitats of many species are fragmented. Therefore, the survival in a metapopulation depends on the stability of the single populations and the amount of movements between patches. We chose the calcareous grassland specialist butterfly species Polyommatus coridon as a model. As study area, we selected a mosaic-like landscape in Rhineland-Palatinate (western Germany) with several well preserved calcareous grassland fragments. We marked a total of 2,211 individuals during July and August 2003. The overall recapture ratio was 7.1%. The estimated mean butterfly densities over the whole flight season ranged from 52 to 487 individuals per hectare. The within-patch movements were relatively low (13.3%) compared with the between-patch movements (3.2%). Therefore, the metapopulation structure appears to be intact in our study area.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the government of Rhineland Palatinate (section North) in Koblenz for the permission to mark the butterflies and to work in nature reserves, Steven Burke (Stanford, CA, USA) for helpful discussions on a draft version of this article and the correction of our English as well as two anonymous referees for their constructive remarks.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biogeography, University of Trier, Fachbereich VI Wissenschaftspark, Trier-Petrisberg, D-54286, Trier, Germany

    Thomas Schmitt, Jan C. Habel, Joachim Besold, Tatjana Becker, Linda Johnen, Martin Knolle, Andreas Rzepecki, Johannes Schultze & Andreas Zapp

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  1. Thomas Schmitt
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  2. Jan C. Habel
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  3. Joachim Besold
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Correspondence to Thomas Schmitt.

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Schmitt, T., Habel, J.C., Besold, J. et al. The Chalk-hill Blue Polyommatus coridon (Lycaenidae, Lepidoptera) in a highly fragmented landscape: How sedentary is a sedentary butterfly?. J Insect Conserv 10, 311–316 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-006-9000-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10841-006-9000-6

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