A preliminary checklist of butterflies at Tajpur, West Bengal, India

Abstract

The present study was conducted to enlist a checklist of butterflies in the coastal belt of Purba Medinipur District, Tajpur of southern West Bengal during the period of January 2021 to December 2022. A total of 41 species of butterflies belonging to 35 genera under five families were recorded during entire study period. Family Nymphalidae (14 members) was the most dominant family followed by Lycaenidae (8 members), Pieridae (7 members), Papilionidae (6 members) and Hesperiidae (6 members). Among 41 butterfly species 2 species were legally protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. During the study a total number of 32 plants from 19 families were documented. The present investigation results also provide a detailed idea about the butterfly diversity of coastal belt in southern West Bengal.