New butterfly species found in Matheran
After an eight-year-long study conducted by the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) in the forest of Matheran, a hill station near Mumbai, researchers have found as many as 77 new species of butterflies which brings the total up to 140 species of butterflies in the ecologically sensitive region spread over an area of 214.73 sq km.
A British researcher, J.A. Betham, surveyed the hills of Matheran for its butterfly diversity in 1894 and had reported 78 butterfly species from the area at that time.
In August 2020, scientists from BNHS and Somaiya Vidyavihar University published a research paper, titled: ‘Finding the forgotten gems: Revisiting the butterflies of Matheran after 125 years, with the introduction to the novel colour barcode for depicting seasons and activity of the Indian butterflies’, in the community peer-reviewed Biodiversity Data Journal. The research paper is an outcome of field work with 22,833 observations and has listed the species surveyed between 2011 and 2019 with the use of colour bar-coding system. This novel barcode system for denoting seasons and activities of Indian butterflies was introduced to help butterfly biologists to concisely and effectively present the data.
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As per the BNHS report, strong seasonal variation in butterfly diversity was observed. The maximum diversity of butterflies was recorded during winter (125), and the least (80) during monsoon. A high similarity of butterfly species composition was observed between the pairs of sites studied, tending towards perfect nestedness. This also emphasises the fact that butterfly diversity in the region is quite stable and chances of emigration to, or immigration from, surrounding regions are very low.
According to BNHS, the findings are indicative of a healthy environment and ecosystem as presence of butterflies is a sign of a flourishing ecosystem. So, a long-term study of butterflies would help the scientific community understand and conserve the health of the ecosystem.
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