Butterfly Diversity and Conservation in Krka National Park, Croatia

Abstract

Monitoring butterfly populations helps researchers determine the extent of biodiversity loss of ecosystems for conservation. However, some countries like Croatia lack butterfly research and monitoring schemes; therefore, local conservation statuses, population trends, and basic descriptions of butterfly ecology are not based on ample data. I aimed to fill this research gap by examining the butterfly diversity within Krka National Park, as well as identifying the vulnerable species and their threats in the park. The most species-rich habitats were grasslands, and surprisingly, riverine forests, potentially due to their proximity to water. Furthermore, open-canopy habitats harbored more species than closed-canopy habitats. In terms of succession, late-stage butterfly communities were distinct from early and intermediate communities, and richness decreased from early to late successional stages. For fire recovery, burnt grasslands had fewer species than unburnt, 3 years post-burn. As for conservation statuses and population trends, 5 species were listed as Near Threatened in Europe, of which 3 had declining populations in both Europe and the Mediterranean. Based on the synthesis of these results, I established four recommendations that will maintain butterfly diversity in Krka National Park and will contribute butterfly research in Croatia. The recommendations are (1) the encouragement of research on the ecology of threatened species in the park, (2) the establishment of a butterfly monitoring scheme in the park, (3) the management of grasslands and riverine forests from land abandonment and fires, and (4) the creation of action plans to combat external threats to the park’s butterfly diversity.