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Published:
Dec 22, 2020Updated:
2020-12-22DOI:
10.4314/met.v31i4.1Keywords:
Article Details
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Main Article Content
Outcomes of the Southern African Lepidoptera Conservation Assessment (SALCA)
Abstract
The Southern African Lepidoptera Conservation Assessment (SALCA) was a collaborative venture between the Lepidopterists’ Society of Africa (LepSoc Africa), the Brenton Blue Trust (BBT) and the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), and formed part of the National Biodiversity Assessment (NBA). SALCA was founded on the importance of Lepidoptera both ecologically and as biodiversity indicators and the proven expertise of the participants during the Southern African Butterfly Conservation Assessment (SABCA). The main outcomes of the SALCA project are presented and discussed here.
The SALCA tool, a custom-designed interactive distribution database, enabled high quality data to be derived so that accurate conservation assessments could be produced in accordance with IUCN methodology. The Red Lists of SALCA and SABCA facilitated the first opportunity to calculate the Red List Index (RLI) for South African butterflies during the period from 2012–2018. Other metrics required for the NBA included protection level and threats analyses. A further outcome was the critical habitat mapping for butterflies, which formed part of a screening tool implemented by SANBI, to ensure that land use changes did not cause any further loss of butterfly biodiversity.
A comprehensive distribution database was developed for South African moths, enabling data to be analysed so that moth species potentially threatened could be short-listed for further investigation.
Geographical hotspots and ecosystems (vegetation types) containing butterflies of conservation concern are highlighted. The societal, economic and human wellbeing benefits of conserving Lepidoptera are identified. Responses by LepSoc Africa to the increasing pressures on South African Lepidoptera biodiversity, are also reported on and discussed. The significant outcomes of SABCA and SALCA are benchmarked against a well-known European butterfly atlasing and conservation assessment project.
The 165 SALCA Red Lists and conservation assessments are presented at the end of this publication.
