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Nocturnality and species survival

G C Daily1, P R Ehrlich

  • 1Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, CA 94305-5020, USA.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|October 15, 1996
PubMed
Summary

Nocturnal moths show higher dispersal and survival in tropical forest fragments than butterflies. Moths maintain species richness across fragments, unlike butterflies, due to favorable nighttime conditions.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Conservation Biology
  • Zoology

Background:

  • Tropical forest fragments face biodiversity loss.
  • Understanding species' responses to habitat fragmentation is crucial for conservation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of habitat fragmentation on butterfly and moth diversity.
  • To determine if nocturnality offers an advantage in fragmented tropical landscapes.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative surveys of butterfly and moth species richness in tropical forest fragments and adjacent pasture.
  • Analysis of species richness correlations between diurnal butterflies and nocturnal moths across varying fragment sizes.

Main Results:

  • Butterfly species richness declined significantly in smaller fragments.
  • Moth species richness remained consistent across all fragment sizes and in pasture habitats.
  • No significant correlation was found between butterfly and moth species richness (r² = 0.005).

Conclusions:

  • Nocturnality appears to confer a dispersal and survival advantage for moths in fragmented tropical forests.
  • Moths' ability to move freely at night, when environmental conditions are more uniform, explains their consistent species richness.
  • Butterflies face significant environmental barriers (temperature, humidity, solar radiation) during the day, limiting their movement and diversity in smaller fragments.

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