All the butterflies I saw during this year's Big Butterfly Count!

As the Big Butterfly Count 2021, run by Butterfly Conservation (https://bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org/about), is coming to an end for this year, I thought I would do a little run down of all the butterflies that I spotted for this year's count. Each entry will contain a few facts about the species and a picture to help you identify them if you see them too.

Butterfly Conservation launched the nationwide citizen science project in 2010, and it has gone on to become the world's biggest survey of butterflies (and a few day flying moths too). The data collected all goes toward the efforts of butterfly conservation.

During the Big Butterfly Count (which this year has run between 16/07 and 08/08), you can do as many counts as you like. All you need do is sit out in a garden, park, or some other sunny spot, and count the number of butterflies that you see. This year, I did two counts; one in a town garden, and one in a village garden. In each spot I saw different numbers and different species.

Before we start proper, I perhaps ought to mention that I undertook my counts in the south east of England and the town count was undertaken in July, while the village count was undertaken in August.

Town count

Unfortunately, for the duration of the fifteen minutes that I spent in a garden in the centre of Bedford, I saw no butterflies, not a single one. However, Butterfly Conservation asks that even if you see no butterflies you still upload that to their website. It all goes towards building up a picture of where species are doing well and where they are not. 

However, after the fifteen minutes that Butterfly Conservation asks of its citizen scientists was over, I did have some visits from Small White butterflies (Pieris rapae). 

Picture shows a small white (source: butterfly-conservation.org)

As its name suggests, the Small White is mostly white; in the sun it is brilliant. However, a black spot adorns each forewing, and each forewing also has black tips. I have seen this butterfly in both town and country.

For more info, see the Butterfly Conservation's entry for the species here.

Village (rural) count

Meadow brown

Picture shows a meadow brown (source: butterfly-conservation.org)

The first butterfly I saw in the village garden count was the Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina). This medium sized butterfly is relatively common throughout Britain and Ireland. Indeed, it is another butterfly I have seen in town and country, though more often in the countryside in my experience. When I have been out walking and had a brown butterfly fluttering about me, I have sometimes confused a Meadow Brown with a Gatekeeper butterfly, however, the Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) is a little smaller and its wings are more orange than the Meadow Brown. They're easier to tell apart when they aren't fluttering around, to be fair!

For more info, see the Butterfly Conservation's entry for the species here.

Peacock

Picture above shows a peacock (source: butterfly-conservation.org)

I saw a couple of these beautiful butterflies in the country garden. They love the buddleia - also known as the butterfly bush! - that grows there. The Peacock (Aglais io) is a magnificent butterfly; a furry body with wings of dark orange-red, and eye-spots adorning each wing. When the sun is out, these are familiar visitors in this country garden and, though there are arguably more stunning butterflies out there, I am honoured to be able to get up close to this attractive species - I love the red and those eye-spots! When you get up close, the pattern looks like the most intricate chalk on the most delicate paper ever!

For more info, see the Butterfly Conservation's entry on the species here.

Red admiral

Picture shows a red admiral (source: butterfly-conservation.org)

The last entry in my count was this not unfamiliar visitor to British gardens. Another butterfly that likes the buddleia plant that grows in the countryside garden where I did my rural garden count. With its beautiful red and black wings, splashes of white at the tips, it catches the eye. They are strong flyers. Unfortunately, a couple of the ones I saw looked as though they had seen better days; their wings were faded and a little torn - perhaps they got caught in a downpour - but they were still flying. The Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) is a familiar but beautiful visitor.

For more info, see Butterfly Conservation's entry on this species here.

Well, that was it for me. Though, I won't stop looking out for butterflies!

I realise that my own count this year might not be terribly exciting for some, these not being unfamiliar sights for butterfly watchers or lepidopterists. Still, I think they are beautiful and this was my experience during this year's Big Butterfly Count. What was yours? What did you see?

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