Earlier in the year, Butterfly Conservation teamed up with the Woodland Trust to launch a new 'Charter':
Time to protect our trees
Butterfly Conservation has joined a campaign to help protect the UK’s woodland and the butterflies and moths that depend on them.
Our woods and trees are facing unprecedented pressures from development, disease and climate change. They risk being neglected, undervalued and forgotten.
Woodlands are a vitally important habitat for butterflies such as the
Purple Emperor,
Speckled Woodand
White Admiral and a huge range of moths. At a time when wildlife is under threat like never before protecting our trees, woods and forests for the future is vitally important.
The campaign is calling for a new charter for trees, woods and people. The charter will be launched in November 2017, which marks 800 years since Henry lll signed the original Charter of the Forest. This influential charter protected and restored the rights of people to access and use the Royal Forests.
The coalition believe that now is the time to create a new charter, a broader charter that recognises the importance of trees in our society, celebrates their enormous contribution to our lives, and acts now so that future generations can benefit from them too.
The coalition’s ambition is that the principles set out in the 2017 charter will articulate the relationship between people and trees in the UK in the 21st century.
The charter will provide guidance and inspiration for policy, practice, innovation and enjoyment, redefining the everyday benefits that we all gain from woods and trees in our lives, for everyone, from Government to businesses, communities and individuals.
Local groups, clubs, councils and committees will be encouraged to take part by bringing people together to celebrate the woods and trees at the heart of their communities and help feed ideas and stories into the building of the charter.
Here's their latest newsletter:
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Welcome to April's ‘all aflutter’.
The
official start of British Summer Time (BST) has blessed us with more daylight
hours to enjoy the great outdoors but, if you're heading out, remember the start
of BST doesn't necessarily mean the start of the sunny weather. This month we
look at how last year’s cool summer made life difficult for our butterflies. The
Secret Gardener reveals why the humble rockery can prove a wildlife haven. We
introduce the April Fritillary and we find out why one of our conservationists
is pounding the pavement of the capital to save butterflies and
moths.
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Small Copper
Struggles
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Have you ever
wondered why butterflies are more active on sunny days? Butterflies are
cold-blooded which means that they can’t regulate their own body temperature. A
butterfly that is too cold cannot fly, flee predators or feed. In short, the
weather affects their ability to function.
Last year’s
summer was both colder than average and the results from 2015’s UK Butterfly
Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS) reveal the negative impact this had on butterfly
populations.
The Small
Copper was one of the species that struggled most in the cold conditions with
numbers down almost a quarter on the previous year. Some 34 of the 57 species
studied experienced declines in 2015.
There are
other factors causing butterfly declines which are slightly easier to control,
but sunshine is sometimes the boost a struggling species needs to get back on
track. Fingers crossed for a warm and sunny
2016.
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Dig It: Hot
Rocks
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You wouldn’t
normally associate the humble rockery with butterflies and moths, but think
again as these hot and dry microhabitats can offer conditions much sought after
by garden wildlife.
Not only can
they provide butterflies with an important place to bask but, with a bit of
careful planting, they can prove the perfect spot to grow much needed nectar
sources.
The Secret
Gardener reveals which species to plant in your rockery to attract butterflies
and moths this spring and summer.
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Look Out For: April
Fritillaries
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It's too
early in the year for many common garden and countryside butterflies to put in
an appearance, but one of our most rapidly declining species, the Pearl-bordered
Fritillary is 'on the wing'. This golden
butterfly was originally known as the April Fritillary because of its emergence
time. Once widespread, it has seen numbers plummet in the last
century.
Conservation
work to prevent extinction includes the coppicing of woodland which allows
sunlight into overgrown areas. Wild violets can then grow in the clearings,
supplying food for the caterpillars. If successful, small colonies can expand
into these new areas of suitable habitat and increase their dwindling
numbers.
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Running For
Butterflies
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Butterfly
Conservation’s Ian Middlebrook is braving blisters for butterflies by running
the 2016 Virgin Money London Marathon.
Butterfly
Monitoring Co-ordinator Ian will face the gruelling 26.2 mile run on 24 April to
raise money for Butterfly Conservation’s important recording and monitoring work
across the UK.
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Images
from top to bottom: Small Copper (Tim Melling), Green-veined White on Saxifrage
(Nicholas Hatton), Pearl-bordered Fritillary (Andrew
Cooper).
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Useful
Links...
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Blog
Lifting
the lid on behind-the-scenes work keeping our staff busy - from midnight
mountain searches for rare moths to needle-in-a-haystack hunts for Hairstreak
eggs.
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Events
You
can brush up your identification skills, help on a conservation task, see a rare
species or just enjoy a beautiful site. Our regional branches run events across
the UK all year round.
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Butterfly
Conservation: Company limited by guarantee, registered in England
(2206468)
Registered Office: Manor Yard, East Lulworth, Wareham, Dorset, BH20
5QP, Tel: 01929 400
209
Charity registered in
England & Wales (254937) and in Scotland (SCO39268
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All Aflutter – Spring Butterflies
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