LAUSR

The establishment of urban forests are the way to reduce the impact of urban development on biodiversity. This study aimed to analyze the distribution and diversity of butterflies in various urban forests in North Minahasa Regency, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Butterfly sampling was conducted in four urban forests. The sampling employed the sweeping technique following a the transect line. The results obtained included as many as 5 families of butterfly, consisting of 56 species and 985 individuals. Using the distribution pattern of butterfly species based on the Morisita index, 52 species were found classified as aggregate. The highest species diversity was found in the Kuwil City Forest. Diversity of butterfly species was negatively correlated with air temperature, light intensity, and wind speed. According to the similarity index of the butterfly species community, it was found that the Kaki Dian City Forest, Kenangan City Forest, and Kuwil City Forest shared a high similarity, while the Talise City Forest did not share many similarities with the other urban forests. The diversity of butterflies in urban forests was influenced by the surrounding area, the complexity of the composition of vegetation structures, water availability, and abiotic environmental factors. Keyword: aggregate, environmental, Morisita, sweeping technique, vegetation structures