Recording Butterflies by Matthew Shaft

If you think it difficult to distinguish butterfly species, don’t worry; it is. Well, yes and no. It takes practice, experience, going with experts, most crucially, going to the correct sites, but most of our butterflies, the large bright ones that everyone loves, are easy-peasy. If there is anyone whose heart is not gladdened by seeing their first Red Admiral, Painted Lady or Coma of the year in their own garden, then perhaps a dose of penal servitude should at least be given consideration. It is only certain species such as the Blues and Fritillaries that cause any problems.

The ‘Cabbage White’, the only butterfly that could be classified as a pest, (try spraying with salt water, or use a fine net from the time the seeds are sown) will actually be a Small White, a Large White, or just possibly a Green-veined White(which is not a pest).

Your best bet is to join Butterfly Conservation or go to a book shop and buy a book on British or European Species, with plenty of large colour pictures showing the sexes, caterpillars, and describing habitat, behaviour, plants, where to find it and when.

Butterflies love the sun, so the nearer to the equator the better. Ecuador (Ecuador means equator) has about 3,300 species, Hampshire about 40, and then as you go north, fewer and fewer (although they do have species that we do not). So, the good news is that it is not a large subject, most are easy to identify, Butterfly Conservation will take you to them or you can attract many species to your own garden. Buddleias, Marjorams, Nettles, there are plenty of booklets and internet sites to assist you: www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/gardening_with_children/plantstotry_butterfly.shtml

We are fortunate in Hampshire being in the centre of the south, we probably have more butterflies than any other county, and we also have the Downs, the area around Winchester being the best in the UK. In July or August, locations such as Old Winchester Hill, or Magdalene Hill Down will show thousands of Blues performing; plants can actually be quivering with the numbers. Rejoice, just rejoice.

Matthew Shaft records all fauna on his transects, including butterflies, and his article refers to Hampshire, and the rich area where he lives, part of which is the edge of the Hampshire Downs. Much of this piece refers to the more difficult species. Best to start with the common large butterflies, which gladdens the heart of all. If you do not feel this way, try taking a magnum of whisky, slump down in a darkened corner of a darkened room, bury your head into your hands, slowly, slowly shake your head, and despair, just despair.

Butterfly recording

With only around sixty species found in Britain and not all on the wing at the same time, identifying butterflies is not too difficult. Time of year and habitat are great aids to identification. Most people with an interest in wildlife will be able to recognise most of the common widespread species such as Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Red Admiral and Painted Lady.

The whites may cause problems, but Green-veined Whites prefer damp areas. Meadow Brown and Gatekeeper, although similar and occurring in the same habitats, are not difficult to distinguish, as Meadow Brown is larger and duller than Gatekeeper and has a longer flight season. The families that cause the most difficulties are the skippers, blues and fritillaries.

Dingy and Grizzled are fairly common skippers, being on the wing in spring.

Large, Small and Essex are the only widespread skippers in Hampshire and are on the wing during summer. The other skipper found in our area is Silver-spotted but this is a chalk downland species. It is one of our latest butterflies to emerge and is on the wing during August. The last to be on the wing is the Large Skipper.

A blue butterfly seen in a garden will probably be a Holly Blue and is the only blue on the wing during April. Also this is generally the only blue likely to be found where there are trees or flying high above the ground.

Other blues are found in open grassy areas and fly close to the ground. Most blues are found on chalk grassland where there can be several species on the wing at the same time during the latter half of summer. A blue that is milky blue will be Chalkhill Blue and is the palest of these species. One that is a brilliant sky blue and has a metallic hue in bright sunshine will be Adonis Blue, but this is a rare butterfly. Most blues seen in many grassland habitats will be Common.

Silver-studded Blues are only found on heathland, but both Common and Holly blues also occur in these habitats. Female blues are even harder to identify as they are brown!

Following huge declines in the past two decades, there are now only two widespread fritillaries in Hampshire. The Dark Green is generally found in open grassland, while the Silver-washed is generally found in more wooded habitats, but this is something of a generalisation.

Butterflies are an excellent indicator of the health of the environment and are likely to change their status far more rapidly than birds, as the dramatic declines in the fritillaries prove. This makes butterfly recording very important for conservation. For more information on butterflies visit the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Butterfly Conservation Branch website on www.hampshireiow-butterflies.org.uk

Butterfly Conservation is the organisation where moth records should be sent. Moth recording is much more problematic than butterfly recording, as there are over two thousand species found in Britain.. Anyone who wants to know more about them should go along to a moth evening where experts will identify the many species.

Other wildlife recording

The BTO/JNCC/RSPB Breeding Bird Survey includes optional mammal recording. However, this is biased to the larger and more obvious species such as Rabbit, Grey Squirrel, Red Fox or Roe Deer or to field signs such as molehills. Mammals are one of the poorest surveyed groups of animals due to many being secretive, nocturnal or very small and hidden in vegetation.

One group of species that many people have become interested in during the past decade is dragonflies. To find out more visit the British Dragonfly Society website on www.dragonflysoc.org.uk

Do try and have a go at recording wildlife. If you wish to record officially, you will be welcomed to the fold. Furthermore, you will be assisting in conservation, having fun whilst doing so and you will found that your knowledge of wildlife will improve.

Matthew Shaft

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