Extinction and reintroduction of Parnassius apollo in the Pieniny National Park (Polish Carpathians)
1997
Witkowski, Z. | Adamski, P. | Kosior, A. | Plonka, P. (Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow (Poland). Inst. of Nature Conservation)
Over the last century, the decline of the apollo butterfly in the Pieniny mountains has been observed. This decline is attributed to environmental pollution, shrinkage of the area of open habitats inhabited by the species (as a result of introducing new, more expansive varieties of spruce in the area of Pieniny mountains), genetic erosion affecting small populations, and decimating by butterfly collectors. The five-year reintroduction programme in the Pieniny National Park included three main areas of activity: captive breeding of specimens to reinforce wild populations, preparation of habitats once inhabited by the apollo butterfly, including the removal of trees and shrubs and the replanting of the host plant, and research work. This was concerned with the ecology and dynamics of wild and reintroduced populations, description of the decline process and explanation of its causal factors, and evaluation of the state of their habitat with special regard to the abundance and ecology of their host plant - Sedum maximum. The reintroduction has resulted in the triple growth of the native population inhabiting the massif of Trzy Korony (from c. 20 in 1991 to c. 60 in 1995); moreover, butterflies raised in captivity were released in four new reconstucted localities. In 1995 migrations of specimens between all but one of the localities were observed
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