The UK Butterflies website provides information on all of the butterfly species found in the British Isles, including those that are extinct or migrants.
This website is open to anyone wishing to contribute - click here to find out how you can help!
Finally, the many website features can be accessed using the drop-down menus found at the top of each page as well as the nifty little gadget below, modelled after the Apply iTunes album selector!
"How do you start butterfly-watching? The website UK Butterflies is a great help on identification." - Simon Barnes, Times Online
Enhanced Video Support
Posted: 24-Feb-10
Given advances in technology, it's inevitable that we're going to see more and more butterfly-related videos on the UK Butterflies website. As a result, the website is now integrated with YouTube, which is pretty much a de-facto standard for video storage these days. You'll find links to relevant videos on each species page, and there is also a Species-specific Video gallery to help you pass the time! In general, the standard of videos is relatively-poor when compared with stills or professionally-produced videos (and watch this space for reviews of a couple of DVDs coming out this year!). In many cases, the chosen background music is dreadful! But there are some classics. It was good to rediscover Matthew Oates' trip to Collard Hill to see Large Blue (see below), and Andy Barker at Magdalen Hill Down looking at his Chalkhill Blues! I've also found some Grayling courtship video (amazing piece!) and a video demonstrating the behaviour of a Scarce Swallowtail larva that I tried to explain to someone once, but couldn't quite articulate the jerky movement it makes as it crawls along! You'll find all of these - and more! - Pete Eeles
Richard Lewington Original Images
Posted: 20-Feb-10
UK Butterflies visitors have been given early access to original images from Richard Lewington, as shown here. The images were painted for the upcoming 2nd edition of the classic Butterflies of Britain and Ireland and anyone who has seen Richard's work would agree that his paintings are outstanding! This is a rare opportunity not to be missed.
An Update of a Classic!
Posted: 19-Feb-10
An article in the Spring 2010 issue of Butterfly, the Butterfly Conservation magazine, gives insights into the update to The Butterflies of Britain and Ireland by Jeremy Thomas and Richard Lewington. This book is a real classic and recommended to every butterfly enthusiast. A review will appear on the UK Butterflies website in due course. Autographed copies can be pre-ordered from the British Wildlife website and are an absolute bargain when one considers that the original (and hard to come by) edition regularly sells for over £60 on eBay.
Latest Issue of Butterfly Magazine
Posted: 18-Feb-10
The Spring 2010 issue of Butterfly, Butterfly Conservation's magazine is now out. As usual, plenty of excellent articles and news, including some insights into the updated classic Butterflies of Britain and Ireland by Jeremy Thomas and Richard Lewington and a summary of Mike McCarthy's Great British Butterfly Hunt. Not a Butterfly Conservation member? Click here to enter the Butterfly Conservation website where you can find joining instructions.
2010 Photography Workshop
Posted: 16-Feb-10
Only a few places remain and so this is the final reminder of the UK Butterflies photography workshop, in association with the Hampshire and Isle of Wight branch of Butterfly Conservation.
The purpose of the workshop is to gather together members of the UK Butterflies community to share their photographic experiences, with an emphasis on Lepidoptera.
The event will be run at Longstock, near Stockbridge, Hampshire, on Saturday April 24th 2010, 10am to 5pm. Click here for more details on the event, including information on how to register. We're delighted that Matthew Oates has agreed to be our guest speaker.
Website Update
Posted: 30-Jan-10
A couple of new features have been added to the website. The first is a gallery of moths that are often confused with butterflies, with all images contributed by members of the UK Butterflies forums. The second is a summary of butterfly nectar sources that complements the summary of larval foodplants and that has a forum thread dedicated to it where all forum members can contribute to the discussion. Finally, the latest newsletter contains a roundup of recent sightings reported from across the British Isles.
Butterfly Conservation Symposium 2010
Posted: 13-Jan-10
Butterfly Conservation's 6th International Symposium will be held at Reading University from 26th to 28th March 2010. Sir David Attenborough, BC President, will open the event, whose theme is "The 2010 target and beyond for Lepidoptera". Click here for more information - including the full programme which was published a few days ago and looks superb!
Large Blue Open Day at Green Down in 2010
Posted: 12-Jan-10
Last summer saw yet another increase in the number of eggs laid at Green Down after the population crashed in 2007. 92,000 eggs were laid in the summer of 2009 up by 13,500 from the previous summer. Despite less adults on the wing in 2009 there were more days suitable for egg laying. Following the success of previous open days at the Green Down reserve, the Somerset Wildlife Trust is pleased to announce the date for 2010 – Sunday 13th June. Due to the sensitive nature of the site, places are limited and there will be a draw to allocate tickets. This year, the cost will be £3.50 per adult and £2 per child, payable in advance. Please apply for your ticket by sending a letter and cheque payable to Somerset Wildlife Trust, together with your name, contact number and address written in BLOCK CAPITALS and a SAE to: Green Down Open Day, Somerset Wildlife Trust, Tonedale Mill, Tonedale, Wellington, Somerset TA21 0AW. Somerset Wildlife Trust members should include their SWT membership numbers. Your application needs to be in by 7 May 2010, as any received after this date will not be included in the draw. Ticket holders will receive their tickets during June and everyone else will have their cheques returned.
A Lepidoptera Report from Greece
Posted: 09-Jan-10
A Lepidoptera report from Greece is now available, detailing the butterflies and moths observed on a trip made to northern Greece from 7th to 13th June 2009. A big thanks to Peter Davey for co-authoring the report and to Chris Manley, Lynn Fomison, Pat Turner, Robin Turner and Tim Norriss for the use of their wonderful photos.
Contribution to Butterfly Conservation
Posted: 11-Dec-09
As hinted at in the last newsletter, we were hoping that UK Butterflies would be in a position to donate over £1000 to Butterfly Conservation this year. I'm pleased to report that our grand total has come to £1709.46. I'd like to express my appreciation to UK Butterflies sponsor WildGuides as well as BirdGuides, who allowed us to sell some of their books and DVDs with a significant percentage of the sales going towards this total. In particular, however, I'd like to thank Gary Richardson and Lisa Baker-Richardson, once again, for their huge contribution in selling the UK Butterflies calendar and a wonderful array of greetings cards and prints. Their contribution alone came to a shade under £1500.
Improved Newsletter Format
Posted: 11-Dec-09
A new mechanism has been implemented that will allow the UK Butterflies team to post weekly updates of butterfly-related activity during the more-active months. A lot of this information, especially sightings and unusual observations, is often buried in the UK Butterflies forums or various sightings pages from Butterfly Conservation branch websites - so we look forward to keeping you up to date as the year unfolds. Click here to subscribe to the newsletter.
Integration with Google Maps
Posted: 06-Dec-09
The UK Butterflies site information is now available through a new integration with Google Maps. The new mechanism is vastly superior to the old mechanism where maps were almost impossible to view if the particular grid square contained a lot of sites. The new mechanisms allows you to dynamically move around the map, zoom in and out, and combine roads with satellite information, for example. Various "push pins" also allow you to see the species (and species rating, if available) for each site.
2009 Photography Competition Results
Posted: 30-Nov-09
The 2009 photography competition voting has now closed and I'm pleased to announce that the winning shot is Sean Browne's excellent photo of a pair of Wood Whites. Sean wins the publication of his choice from UK Butterflies sponsor, WildGuides. Congratulations to all of the category winners and many thanks to all of the entrants for their contribution. Click here to peruse the winning photos.
UK Butterflies at BC National AGM
Posted: 21-Nov-09
UK Butterflies had a stand at the Butterfly Conservation National AGM, with all profits going to the society. It was good to meet up with so many UKB members and this was, by far, our most successful event to date. A fantastic day with superb presentations and excellent stalls. Some photos from the day can be found here in the UK Butterflies forums.
UK Butterflies at AES Exhibition
Posted: 22-Oct-09
Another milestone for UK Butterflies was reached as we had our first stand at the annual exhibition of the Amateur Entomological Society at Kempton Park racecourse. It was great to meet so many members there - as well as personalities and authors such as Chris Packham, Nick Baker, Richard Lewington, Clive Farrell, David Newland, Richard Fox and Chris Manley. Many kindly popped along to the stand to give us their regards. Some photos from the day can be found here in the UK Butterflies forums.
UK Butterflies a "Top 50" Website
Posted: 19-Aug-09
BBC Countryfile magazine has voted UK Butterflies as one of its "Top 50" British wildlife websites! Click here to see the complete listing - UK Butterflies is listed under the "Best bug websites" category. Thanks to all of the contributors for helping the website receive such an accolade!
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