Abstract

Of about 500 species of Lepidoptera collected from the Silent Valley National Park, 95 species of butterflies and 245 of moths have been identified. The butterflies collected, belonged to 9 families. The maximum number of species belonged to the families Nymphalidae and Papilionidae. Habitat preferences of the various groups of butterflies were studied and five distinct biocoenoses with characteristic fauna were recognised, viz., interior forest, forest clearings and edges, forest canopies, grass lands and river banks. Of the various species collected, 13 were endemic to South India which are now very much restricted in their distribution. This included 5 species having protected status. The moths recorded in this study belonged to 15 families: Pyralidae, Noctuidae, Geometridae and Arctiidae being dominant. Some groups like Sphingidae, Lasiocampidae, Drepanidae, Epiplemidae, Saturnidae and Cossidae were only poorly represented. Preliminary data suggests insects species