Nocturnality and species survival.
Surveys of butterfly and moth diversity in tropical forest fragments suggest that nocturnality confers a dispersal, and possibly a survival, advantage. The butterfly faunas of smaller fragments were depauperate; in contrast, the species richness of nocturnal moths was similar in all fragments and even in pasture. The lack of correlation between butterfly and moth species richness among fragments (r2 = 0.005) is best explained by movements of moths at night when ambient conditions in forest and pasture are most similar; butterflies face substantial daytime temperature, humidity, and solar radiation barriers. This interpretation is supported by information on birds, beetles, and bats.
Daily
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Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, CA 94305-5020, USA.
Ehrlich
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D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D001717:Birds; D002080:Butterflies; D002685:Chiroptera; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D001517:Coleoptera; D004463:Ecology; D017753:Ecosystem; D009036:Moths; D013472:Sunlight; D013534:Survival; D013696:Temperature