Life cycles of Sweltsa illiesi and S. lepnevae were determined from a headwater stream in Mt. Jumbong. Identification of nymphs was done by using DNA barcoding. Nymphs begin to have species specific color pattern on their head several months prior to adult emergence and differ in the form of the third antennal segment. Two species appear to have similar semivoltine life cycles in this stream, beginning to hatch from June and finishing adult emergence about 701 days later. The combined annual mean biomass in ash free dry mass (AFDM) was estimated as 96 mg AFDM m-2. The combined annual secondary production were 373 mg and 297 mg AFDM m-2 yr-1, calculated by using size frequency method and increment summation method respectively.
Leptalina unicolor is a hesperiid butterfly with a restricted distribution in Korea, Japan, China, and Russia. Recently, the number of individuals is rapidly decreased in their natural habitat. This skipper has been classified as an endangered species in the ‘Red Data Book’, and according to an IUCN report, is under threat of extinction. Therefore, the conservation and restoration of this species both locally and globally are urgently needed. A population of L. unicolor was found in an unknown habitat in Jaeyaksan, Miryang, Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea in 2011, and these individuals were used in the present study. Here, the life cycle, characteristics of each instar larva and breeding information were determined by breeding L. unicolor in the laboratory from 2012 to 2015. The results indicated that L. unicolor occurs twice a year and over-winter as a fifth instar larva. A springform female individual laid 17.25±5.52 eggs, and summer form laid 29.00±5.86 eggs; it takes 53.79±0.73 days for L. unicolor to develop from eggs to adults. After spawning, the eggs developed in 6.16±0.18 days, and larvae developed in 33.71±0.58 days; the pre-pupal stage to emergence required 14.22±0.31 days. Based on these results, we presented effective breeding information for the restoration and proliferation of the species. Several candidate plants species have been reported in the literature as a food source for L. unicolor, but we found that the preferred diet this butterfly was Miscanthus sinensis. The larvae could move easily when their preferred diet was planted in 80% the cage floor area Year-round breeding was achieved by placing overwintering individuals in low temperatures in autumn. To our knowledge, this is the first study to the biology of L. unicolor in Korea, and the results of this study could be used as preliminary information for the conservation and restoration of this species in its natural habitat.