Riqueza de especies de mariposas (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) en un área de bosque tropical en Zarumilla, Tumbes, Perú

Butterflies are indicators of the environmental well-being of forests and a symbol of beauty, color and emotions in human beings. The knowledge of this group in the area is partial, which is why the study was carried out from May 2020 to April 2021 in seven sectors of the Zarumilla Valley, Tumbes, Peru. The objective was to evaluate the diversity of butterflies at the family level, using the Shannon (H) and Simpson (ʎ) indices, their relative abundance and species richness in each sector. The evaluations were biweekly using entomological nets and Van Someren - Rydon traps and as an attractive bait a mixture of fruits, chicha de jora and molasses or sugar in proportions of 70, 20 and 10%; in addition to baits based on decomposing fish. The collected specimens were placed in paper envelopes for assembly and identification. A total of 323 specimens were collected distributed in six families: Nymphalidae (39.13%), Hesperiidae (27.54%), Pieridae (15.94%), Lycaenidae (10.14%), Papilionidae (2.90%) and Riodinidae (4.35%). A richness of 69 species was obtained distributed in: Hesperiidae (19), Lycaenidae (7), Nymphalidae (27), Papilionidae (2), Pieridae (11) and Riodinidae (3). According to the Shannon index (H), the greatest diversity was found in the Uña de Gato sector. The Simpson diversity index (ʎ) was high in the sectors of Matapalo, Uña de Gato, Papayal, Lechugal, Manglares and La Coja.