Butterfly experts rejoice after summer records biggest influx of ‘painted lady’ butterflies for ten years as half a million arrived in UK from mainland Europe
- A ‘painted lady year’ is a natural phenomenon that occurs about once a decade
- The annual count was carried out by wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation
- It revealed that several other common species experienced a good summer
This summer was a ‘painted lady year’, with almost half a million of the migratory butterflies recorded.
After its annual count, wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation has confirmed that this year unusually high numbers of painted ladies arrived in the UK from Europe.
A ‘painted lady year’ is a natural phenomenon that occurs about once a decade, with the last big influx in 2009.
This summer was a ‘painted lady year’, with almost half a million of the migratory butterflies being recorded
There was a 235 per cent increase in numbers of peacock butterflies sighted compared with last year
Results from the Big Butterfly Count, in which members of the public took part for three weeks during the summer, show that the number of painted ladies was almost 30 times greater than in 2018.
The count also revealed that several other common species have experienced a good summer, helped by the fine weather.
There was a 235 per cent increase in numbers of peacock butterflies sighted compared with last year.
And the small tortoiseshell, which has been struggling in recent years, had its best result since 2014, with numbers up by 167 per cent.
Around 70,000 were spotted this summer.