The Big Butterfly Count

The results of the annual Big Butterfly Count are out and they show, once again, a serious decrease in the numbers of butterflies on the wing. The statistics are broken down by country - link here - and, looking at the Scottish results, we can see some major differences compared to what we have witnessed ourselves this year here in Golspie. For example, the peacocks and red admirals have done well in Scotland - up 243% and 135% respectively - but we've seen alarmingly few of them, and of the small tortoiseshell, at a 17% increase nationally, even fewer.

The meadow brown has shown a small increase in the statistics but we've been worried by how few we've seen, compared to memories of previous seasons.

Things do work the other way as well. We've observed plenty of ringlets but national they've seen a 10% decrease. However, I would agree that one of the most common butterflies locally, the....

....oh-so-pretty common blue, has seen a decline.

At times the reporting of the butterfly numbers seems to dwell too much on the winners and losers and too little on the overall picture, which is grim.  We're losing our butterflies and this is a tragedy - but then, we're losing so much of our natural heritage that their plight pales into insignificance.