
@article {105474,
	title = {Ecological monitoring and indicator taxa: butterfly communities in heterogeneous landscapes of the Western Ghats and Malabar coast, India},
	journal = {JOURNAL OF INSECT CONSERVATION},
	year = {2022},
	month = {01/2022},
	abstract = {<p>As the pace of socioeconomic developments continues to accelerate, the environmental degradation and biodiversity loss become the norm. While it is crucial to constantly monitor and assess ecological impacts, baseline data are scanty for ecologically sensitive regions and biodiversity hotspots such as the Western Ghats. With their great public appeal and ease to work with, butterflies are excellent communities to monitor the ecological health. To characterize the baseline patterns of butterfly communities, using time-constrained counts, we surveyed eight heterogeneous landscapes of the coastal plains of the Western Ghats. We recorded 43,118 individuals and 175 species, with large differences in their diversity and species-specific abundances among habitats. The coastal and semi-evergreen-forest habitats were at the two extremes with intermediate patterns in agricultural and other habitats that suffered diverse anthropogenic pressures. Using indicator value analysis, 22 habitat-specific and several shared indicator species were identified. Even some of the most abundant species showed distinct niches, and therefore can be used as indicator species to monitor community dynamics. Patterns of numerous habitat-specific host-plant butterfly species pairs that were identified were discussed in relation to butterfly abundance and conservation. Implications for insect conservation This study has implications for insect conservation by providing important baseline data on butterfly taxa for future monitoring and assessment of this ecologically sensitive region.</p>
},
	doi = {10.1007/s10841-022-00368-5},
	author = {Naik, Deepak and Rao, R. Shyama Prasad and Kunte, Krushnamegh and Mustak, Mohammed S.}
}
@article {123121,
	title = {Seasonal dynamics and polyphenism of butterfly communities in the coastal plains of central Western Ghats, India },
	journal = {Journal of Biosciences volume},
	volume = {47},
	year = {2022},
	month = {12/2022},
	pages = {79},
	abstract = {<p>Long-term socioeconomic progress requires a healthy environment/ecosystem, but anthropogenic activities cause environmental degradation and biodiversity loss. Constant ecological monitoring is, therefore, necessary to assess the state of biodiversity and ecological health. However, baseline data are lacking even for ecologically sensitive regions such as the Western Ghats. We looked at the seasonality and polyphenism of butterflies of the central Western Ghats to obtain baseline population patterns on these charismatic taxa. We recorded 43118 individuals (175 species) using fortnightly time-constrained counts for two consecutive years and found the peak abundance (49\% of the total individuals) in the post-monsoon period (October to January). Seasonal abundance was correlated with the overall increase in species richness. Habitat differences were stronger than seasonality as samples clustered based on sites. Several species also displayed polyphenism with distinct distributions of wet and dry season forms. Seasonal equitability and indicator species analysis showed distinct inter-species differences in seasonality patterns. This work provides key baseline data on the seasonal dynamics of butterflies of the Western Ghats in the context of climate change and conservation. It will help monitor this ecologically sensitive region using butterflies.</p>
},
	doi = {doi.org/10.1007/s12038-022-00316-0},
	author = {Naik, D. and Rao, R.S.P. and Kunte, K. and Mustak, Mohammed S.}
}
