Seasonal variation of butterfly community in Sambalpur University Campus, Sambalpur, Odisha, India

The objective of the study was to understand the community dynamics with respect to changing climatic conditions particularly in premonsoon, monsoon and postmonsoon conditions. We tested the hypothesis that the abundance and diversity of butterflies would differ significantly across sampling period throughout the year. The Pollard (20) walk method was used for butterfly survey. Twelve months study of butterfly community showed a single peak of abundance. A total of 75 species belonging to 53 genera in 17 sub families of six families namely Nymphalidae, Riodinidae, Lycaenidae, Pieridae, Papilionidae, Hesperiidae were recorded. The maximum diversity was observed in the post monsoon period between the months of August and September. The lowest diversity was found during the summer. The present study illustrated the peak diversity during the post-monsoon and quantitatively assessed community assemblages between ecosystems across a temperature gradient evaluating potential conservation role of natural areas in urban landscapes.