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Abstract
In Chocó, as in most of the neotropics, faunistic knowledge is not yet sufficient to determine, with any degree of confidence, which areas harbour the highest number of species. This paper provides the first inventory of the butterfly species occurring in the upper Garrapatas valley, an arca of the Chocó biogeographical region which is particularly threatened by a number of impacts. The faunistic inventory includes records of 375 [388] species and 207 genera and two of Colombia's rarest nymphalid butterfly species. Two methods are used to predict the overall species richness of butterflies in the study area: species accumulation cuives and Ithomiinae as indicators. The species accumulation curve method predicts a total of 403 species for the upper Garrapatas in contrast with an estimate of 386 by using Ithomiines as indicators for total butterfly diversity. We also test how well different butterfly families and subfamilies predict the overall species richness for 27 Neotropical sites. The highest correlation coefficient for the estimated species richness and total measured species richness is achieved by the Hesperiidae. Lastly, the use of multiple predictor species is investigated through a pair- wise analysis of butterfly family proportions. The highest correlation coefficient was obtained by the pair of indicators: Riodinidae/Lycaenidae. Aspects of butterfly conservation in the region are also discussed.
