This year, I again participated in the Big Butterfly Count from 14th July to the 6th August 2023 .... see here.
Butterfly Conservation have just announced the findings from the 2023 Big
Butterfly Count, revealing
a better picture for butterflies than had been feared.
Overall,
participants in the Big
Butterfly Count enjoyed
seeing more butterflies this year than in the previous 4 summers. In total,
over 1.5 million butterflies and day-flying moths were recorded from 14th July
to 6th August 2023. After an all-time low in 2022 of just 9 individual
butterflies spotted per count, this year saw an increase to 12 butterflies
recorded on average per count.
However,
this good news is in contrast with what the long-term trends are revealing.
Released for the first time this year, these show that since the Big Butterfly Count started 13 years ago, many species have
significantly decreased.
It is a further warning sign that nature everywhere is in
crisis. Butterflies, as well as forming a vital part of the food chain, are
considered significant indicators of the health of the environment.
Following last summer’s heatwave and drought, scientists
at Butterfly
Conservation called on the public to help them
understand the effect the extreme weather had on the UK’s butterflies. People
responded in their thousands, with almost 95,000 citizen scientists taking part
in this year’s Big
Butterfly Count, conducting 136,719 15-minute counts in
gardens, parks, school grounds and the countryside.
Dr Zoe Randle, Senior Surveys Officer at Butterfly
Conservation, said: “It’s wonderful that so many people have been out enjoying
spotting butterflies. We had huge support for Big Butterfly Count this year,
and thanks to the many people who went out during those sunny intervals, we now
know that the effects of last year’s drought were not as bad for butterflies as
we had feared.
“The mixed weather this year has helped as there has been
an abundance of green food plants available for caterpillars, and plenty of
nectar-rich flowers for adult butterflies. However, while the number of
butterflies recorded this summer has been the highest since 2019, the
longer-term trends show worrying declines for some of the UK’s most common
butterfly species.”
The most-seen species this year was the Red
Admiral with 248,077 recorded, an increase of 338% on last year’s
count and the first time the species, which is increasing in the UK as a result
of climate change, has taken the top-spot.
Gatekeeper was
next with 222,896 sightings. This represents a 12% increase on last year and is
a small, but welcome, boost for a species that has decreased by 28% since the Big
Butterfly Count began.
The Whites took the third and fourth
spot, with 216,666 sightings of Large Whites and 190,506
of Small Whites, an 11% and 15% increase on 2022
respectively. Holly Blue had another good summer, with numbers
up 66% on 2022, in keeping with its longer-term Big
Butterfly Count trend of a
41% increase.
Species that saw a decline from last year include Ringlet, Common
Blue and Speckled Wood, all of which also show long-term
declines.
Although its numbers hardly changed compared to summer
2022, Green-veined White has the most severe Big
Butterfly Count trend in the
longer term with a decrease of 61%.
Dr Richard Fox, Head of Science at Butterfly Conservation, explained: “One of the biggest threats butterflies in the UK face is habitat loss. While the weather certainly has an impact on numbers from year to year, butterflies, moths and many other species can generally cope with variable weather. What they can’t cope with is habitat destruction.
“Butterflies
need a place to live. If they can feed, breed and shelter, they can thrive. By
creating a Wild Space in your outdoor area you can help to reverse the massive
losses of wildlife-friendly habitat and start to turn around the fortunes of
our declining butterflies."
#DefendNature .... Please help save and enhance our laws that protect our environment and wildlife
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