Abstract
In 1996, an old forest pasture grazed from the 1960s to 1988 was restored by coppicing, fencing and grazing by cattle to protect a local population of the endangered butterfly Euphydryas aurinia. An adjoining ungrazed meadow provided a control. In the first years, the butterfly became almost extinct due to the nearly complete consumption of the host plant of the larva, Succisa praten- sis, by cattle. The butterfly population quickly recovered when the grazing pressure was lowered. Thus, the intensity of management should be adjusted by continuous monitoring of the target species. In the 2000s, the annual population was about 50 butterflies, but marked fluctuations took place, probably caused by natural factors. Grazing benefited the meadow flora and improved the habitat of butterflies in general. Extensive forest grazing clearly has the potential for enhancing biodiversity. The value of the experiment is, however, limited because only a single pair of meadows was available for comparison. In the future, it will be even more difficult to arrange a similar experiment due to the great decline in the numbers of traditional meadows and forest grazing in SE Finland.
Highlights
The marsh fritillary Euphydryas aurinia (Rottemburg, 1775) has suffered a severe decline throughout Europe as a consequence of habitat loss, mainly related to changes in agricultural practices (Warren, 1994; Lewis & Hurford, 1997; van Swaay & Warren, 1999)
The main expectations were: (i) Euphydryas aurinia and Succisa pratensis are favoured by the low intensity grazing, (ii) the extensive forest grazing results in a higher species diversity and total abundance of Lepidoptera, and (iii) the grazing increases the diversity of meadow plants
Wooded habitats characterised by Picea and several deciduous species in the tree cover predominate at the restoration site (3.8 ha), but one third of the area (1.3 ha) consists of open habitats suitable for E. aurinia and Succisa (Fig. 1)
Summary
The marsh fritillary Euphydryas aurinia (Rottemburg, 1775) has suffered a severe decline throughout Europe as a consequence of habitat loss, mainly related to changes in agricultural practices (Warren, 1994; Lewis & Hurford, 1997; van Swaay & Warren, 1999). Dynamic populations, classified as metapopulations (Wahlberg et al, 2002a; Anthes et al, 2003), occur in marshy, unfertilised meadows with rich colonies of Succisa pratensis (Moench), the exclusive foodplant of its larvae in Britain and northern Europe (van Swaay & Warren, 1999). Both species commonly rely on the maintenance of traditional low intensity grazing regimes (Adams, 1955; Warren, 1994; Munguira et al, 1997). The main objective was to protect one of the strongest local populations of E. aurinia in Finland by resuming the traditional management of the site. The main expectations were: (i) Euphydryas aurinia and Succisa pratensis are favoured by the low intensity grazing, (ii) the extensive forest grazing results in a higher species diversity and total abundance of Lepidoptera, and (iii) the grazing increases the diversity of meadow plants
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