Abstract:
The diversity, abundance and distribution of butterflies in six habitat types/land use patterns (Semi Managed Coffee forest /limited human involvement, Natural Forest, Plantation, Wood Land, Pastureland and Cropland in landscapes of Gumay and Setema districts of Jima zone, southwestern Ethiopia were studied for five months (January 2015 to June 2015). Sampling of butterflies was conducted using line transects and, walk-and-count methods. Hand nets were used to sample butterflies in both methods. Collections were made for ten days along 20 km transect in each month from 29 hectors of land, each hector was considered as a study plot. The similarity of species among habitats types (Bray-Curtis similarity) was analyzed with cluster analysis using Paleontological Statistics (PAST) software version 2.17.A total of 6,993 butterflies belonged to 70 different species in five families were recorded in the study period. Of these 3,200(45.76%) butterflies belonged to Family Nymphalidae, 2,603(37.22%) family Pieridae, 913(13.05%) family Lycanidae, 272(3.89%) family Papilionidae and only 5(0.07%) belonged to family Hesperidae. Mean butterfly density per plot per month was 444(29%) from natural forest, 357(24.98%) from semi managed coffee forest, 300(18.99%) from plantation forest, 242 (16.12%) from woodland, 100 (6.66%) from pasture and 58(3.86%) individuals of butterfly from cropland. Species richness index and diversity index was highest in natural forest (8.3 and 3.7 respectively) and lowest in the cropland (4.1 and 2.8 respectively) and Evenness index was highest in natural forest and lowest in woodland (0.89 and 0.66 respectively). Butterfly species similarity was highest in the semi managed coffee forest and plantation forest (S=93%), and least in the pasture and natural forest (S=20%). There was significant association between month and butterfly diversity and between month and butterfly abundance (P < 0.05). The findings of the study indicate that butterfly diversity and abundance were higher in natural forest and semi managed Coffee forest but lower in Wood land, Pastureland and Croplands
