Mud-puddling on roadsides: a potential ecological trap for butterflies

Road-kill represents a major threat for butterflies and more generally pollinators. Here we report an observation of conspicuous aggregations mud-puddling on roadsides and, this reason, being massively road-killed by farm vehicles. While the reported itself may not entail significant to populations observed species, it provides opportunity discuss overlooked ecological trap, potentially affecting especially threatened or endemic species. Indeed, kind mortality, due very common behaviour in butterflies, could affect any species area, reason should be furtherly investigated when necessary, appropriately mitigated. Mitigation actions prevent formation moist surfaces along roadsides, case wide verges, provide artificial sites away from roads, correspondence with ecotone between roadside matrix habitat.