Between the 20th of July and the 11th of August 2013, the Butterfly Conservation group is asking members of the public to take part in the Big Butterfly Count.
Keeping track of the butterfly and moth population is an important goal and is a good indicator as to the health of the environment. Butterflies, moths and other insects play an essential role in biodiversity, pollination and as a part of the food chain in the natural world. Four butterfly and sixty Moth species became extinct in the last century and as gardeners we can do our bit to help by growing the right plants or by leaving wild flowers to grow naturally.
For the Big Butterfly Count members of the public are being asked to spend 15 minutes outside noting how many butterflies and moths they see and of which species they belong to.
For those of us who are not experts at identifying the individual species there is a handy sheet provided at the Big Butterfly Count website which can be printed off and used for reference. Participants then have until the end of August to log their sightings online.
For those of us who are not experts at identifying the individual species there is a handy sheet provided at the Big Butterfly Count website which can be printed off and used for reference. Participants then have until the end of August to log their sightings online.
The Big Butterfly Count was launched in 2010 and since then has become the world's biggest survey of butterflies. Nearly 27,000 people participated in 2012 and counted 223,000 butterflies and day-flying moths. With the weather in the UK currently so warm and sunny, now is the perfect time to grab a pen, paper and sun hat and to start counting butterflies!
