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An appraisal of butterfly species composition in terms of comparative diversity richness in various habitat types was conducted in and around the Nandhour Wildlife Sanctuary of Terai Arc landscape in Uttarakhand. During the two years of survey period (March 2018-February 2020), a total of 89 species of butterflies belonging to families Nymphalidae 43 species, Pieridae 15 species, Lycaenidae 13 species, Hesperiidae eight species, Papilionidae seven species, and Riodinidae three species were recorded, of which 46 species represented new records for the Nandhour Landscape. Butterfly diversity and richness were highest in dense moist & open dry riverine forests and lowest in human settlements & agricultural land. No significant differences in the number of species were found in moist mixed deciduous forest, subtropical Chir Pine forest, moist Bhabar Sal forest, moist Shiwalik Sal forest, and plantation forest. Eight species are endemic to the Indian Himalayan Region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Nandhour Wildlife Sanctuary, which is located in the biodiversity rich Terai Arc Landscape of India, provides a vivid array of habitats for wildlife in tropical to sub-tropical forest ecosystems. However, the protected landscape of Nandhour is least explored in terms of insect fauna including beetle diversity, which is pre-requisite for the successful long-term provisioning of ecosystem functions and services. Using standardized sampling methods, this study examined the structure and composition of beetle assemblages across different land-use types in the Nandhour Wildlife Sanctuary of Uttarakhand from March 2018 to February 2020. A total of 42 species were recorded in the study area, belonging to families Scarabaeidae (13 species), Coccinellidae (7 species), Carabidae (6 species), Chrysomelidae, Meloidae (5 species each), Elateridae (2 species), Cerambycidae, Lucanidae, Tenebrionidae and Hydrophilidae (1 species each). Riverine forest had the highest alpha diversity and species richness, followed by mixed forest, grassland, sal (Shorea robusta Gaertn.) forest, chir-pine (Pinus roxburghii Sarg.) forest, scrubland, plantation forest and cultivation land. Overall spatial heterogeneity of the protected landscape resulted in a heterogeneous structure and composition of beetle assemblages, which must be managed in a more sustainable and scientific manner for the proper ecological functioning and stability of the region. Structure and composition was also found to be affected by seasons, assemblages peaked in richness and abundance during wet rainy season. The present study could serve as a baseline for future impact assessment of land-use changes on beetle assemblages, as well as for implementing effective plans and strategies of biodiversity conservation in the sanctuary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) located in state Uttarakhand is the first protected area established for in-situ conservation of biodiversity in India. Despite its national importance, there exists lacunae in knowledge on butterflies, important from the viewpoints of effective planning and implementation of conservation actions in the CTR. Using standardized methods, the present study conducted between 2013 to 2014 was aimed to record butterfly species composition and distribution in different sampling regimes of the CTR in relation to habitat types and disturbances. Study revealed a total of 2621 individual butterflies of 56 species under 5 families. Among them, 24 species belong to the Nymphalidae family, 14 species to the Pieridae, 9 species to the Lycaenidae, 5 species to the Papilionidae and 4 species to the Hesperiidae. 50% of the total species were recorded as ubiquitous and 30 species are new records to the CTR. Species such as Catopsilia pomona (Fabricius), Papilio polytes (Cramer), Eurema hecabe (Linnaeus), Catopsilia pyranthe (Linnaeus) were most abundant and Athyma zeroca (Moore), Sarangesa purendra (Moore), Cyrestis thyodamas (Boisduval), Polyura agraria (Swinhoe) were least abundant species. Variations in the calculated diversity indices across the seasons were observed; wherein, summer season exhibited maximum value for Shannon-Diversity index, followed by late monsoon and early winter. Lowest diversity of butterflies was observed during the periods of late winter. Presence of seven species under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act and five species as rare, substantiate the importance of pristine conditions prevailing in the protected landscape of the reserve. Ongoing tourism activities and habitat alterations threatening butterfly diversity and ecological integrity of the CTR, were also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]