Did you know I do a butterfly transect ? That means I walk the same route in my local nature reserve over and over in Summer, and see which butterflies I can spot each time. The results have been recorded over the years so people can see the changes in the site and to which species are there. Volunteers all over the UK are doing this each week so we can see how British butterflies are faring.
My site is Stargate Ponds, a former opencast and quarrying site near Blaydon, that has been reclaimed and made beautiful.
The site has changed over the time I have been doing it, and so the species seen have changed too. At first all trees on the site were small, with open grassland in between, planted with nectar-rich wildflowers like bird’s foot trefoil and clover. Because of this terrain there were grassland butterfly species like Common Blue, Small Heath and the more rare Dingy Skipper. Now there are many more trees and ground cover, the species have changed accordingly, there’s more Meadow Brown and Ringlet, and much fewer grassland butterflies.
Sometimes the public are curious as to what I am doing when I’m there. I say, “ I am doing a butterfly survey,” to which they reply, “Oh, you don’t see butterflies around any more, do you?” I say “I have seen 138 so far in half an hour,” and they are amazed (although I only see this many in July)! They may be standing there surrounded by butterflies, but because they are mainly brown and small they disregard them.
So let me introduce you to the Meadow Brown, shown above, not just brown but with an orange wing and wingspot. It flies in Summer, browsing over grassy places even in dull weather. If your garden is near such territory you might see them there too, or in dunes, hedgerows and, yes, meadows.
A similar butterfly also flying in July is the Ringlet. When freshly emerged, they are very dark brown with an obvious white edge, but later they fade. If you can get one to sit still you can see the tiny rings on the wings that give it the name. These ones are mating. You would be very lucky to get such a good view as this.
In Summer I am envious of people living further South, as they have so many more butterflies!
In the North East of England we have only a fraction of British butterfly species, but of the ones we have my favourite is the Common Blue, shown at the top of the page. Not that common, of course, but I still see a few on my site, and you might see them in dunes or warm grassland sites. The males are blue and the females brownish with a blue tinge. I celebrate when I see any butterflies, but especially these beautiful creatures.