The last 5 days we have been downhill skiing at Trysil. Birding wise it was dire and in stark contrast to last year when Hawk Owls were a regular sight both from the chair lifts and whilst skiing. On the drive back today I had a quick stop at the floodlands at Starene where there […]
Tag: Small Tortoiseshell
Butterfly numbers fall by 84% in Netherlands over 130 years – study
Butterflies have declined by at least 84% in the Netherlands over the last 130 years, according to a study, confirming the crisis affecting insect populations in western Europe. Researchers analysed 120,000 butterflies caught by collectors between 1890 and 1980 as well as more recent scientific data from more than 2 million sightings to identify dramatic […]
Small copper butterfly in ‘inexorable decline
A tiny but unmistakably dazzling butterfly, the small copper, suffered its worst ever year last summer according to the annual scientific survey of Britain’s butterflies. The bright ginger butterfly joins a growing band of once-common butterflies in apparently inexorable decline despite no discernible habitat loss in recent years and conservationists are warning that climate change […]
Rare yellow-legged tortoiseshell butterfly spotted in UK
A butterfly last seen in the UK more than 60 years ago has been spotted in parts of East Anglia. The yellow-legged tortoiseshell, also known as the scarce tortoiseshell, was seen at RSPB Minsmere, Suffolk. Additional sightings have since been reported in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, said Butterfly Conservation. Experts believe the butterflies, usually found […]
British farmland butterflies bounce back after 2013 summer
The warm and sunny summer of 2013 enabled British farmland butterflies to bounce back from a crash in numbers in 2012, a new survey has found. Results of the Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey (WCBS) show that the majority of farmland species have recovered after the worst year on record for butterflies in 2012, when 52 […]
Warm summer helps butterflies bounce back in the UK
The Azores high is seeing small tortoiseshells and meadow browns returning to gardens and the countryside in heartening numbers after butterflies suffered their worst year on record in 2012. People are being urged to help measure how these insects are bouncing back in the sunshine by joining the Big Butterfly Count, the world’s largest butterfly […]
On the trail of the large tortoiseshell, the UK’s most elusive butterfly
It was, joked Matthew Oates, a “lunatic fringe” mission. Scouring the hedgerows for the caterpillar of a butterfly that has been extinct for more than half a century might not be most people’s idea of fun, but Oates, a National Trust naturalist, has spent 50 summers tracking down the most elusive British butterflies. I joined […]