Immediate impact of a hurricane on the structure of a tropical butterfly community

More intense and frequent hurricanes may lead to long-lasting effects to tropical ecosystems. Here we describe the immediate impact on the butterfly community of a lowland forest in Belize, following Hurricane Earl. Species richness and abundance increased post-hurricane, likely driven by convergence of the organisation between the canopy and understory communities.

强度更高、发生更为频繁的飓风可能会对热带生态系统造成持久影响。本研究描述了伯利兹一处低地森林的蝶类群落，在厄尔飓风（Hurricane Earl）过境后所受到的即时影响。飓风过后，该蝶类群落的物种丰富度与个体多度均有所提升，这一现象或由冠层与林下群落的组织模式趋同所驱动。