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Published:
Apr 10, 2022Updated:
2022-04-10DOI:
10.4314/met.v31i1.3Keywords:
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Main Article Content
Further data on the butterfly fauna (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) of Mpanga Forest, Uganda, and the role of this forest in biodiversity conservation
Abstract
We present records of further 87 butterfly species to the checklist of Mpanga Forest, Mpigi, Uganda, increasing the number of known species to 401. Over half of all newly recorded butterflies are skippers (Hesperiidae), also, a significant proportion of the new records pertain to species which tend to occur in more open habitats and forest-edges, also swampy areas or wetlands. Our records represent the easternmost occurrences of Procampta admiratio(Hesperiidae), Bicyclus rhacotis (Nymphalidae), Pentila alba and Iolaus schultzei (Lycaenidae) with significant range extensions. The still increasing number of species further emphasizes the conservation importance of the remaining small fragments of the once extensive Lake Victoria outlier forest, which almost disappeared from shores of the lake between the Kenyan and Tanzanian border. The pressure from the steeply increasing human population and apparent lack of actual protection measures threatens the Mpanga forest ecosystem and its butterfly fauna, despite its educational and unique eco-tourism potential.
