News Items

Congratulations to Bill Symonds, overall winner in the 2018 UK Butterflies Annual Photography Competition! With a superb photo of a Long-tailed Blue, Bill wins a copy of The Video Guide to the Butterflies of Britain and Ireland (DVD) which has been kindly donated by NatureGuides. Click here to see all of the winning entries.

From the publisher: This is the first book to celebrate each of the 58 British butterfly species in verse. The poems mix fact and fun and will be enjoyed by those already passionate about butterflies whilst enthusing others to become so. Brief introductions to the poems explain aspects of the butterflies' lives necessary to appreciate the poems fully. Many are dedicated to people who have inspired the author in his entomological career. Click here to read the review.

Congratulations to David Simcox (Habitat Designs Ltd.) and Sarah Meredith (Butterfly Conservation), joint winners of the 2018 UK Butterflies Outstanding Contribution Award. David and Sarah went out of their way in 2018 to help UK Butterflies study the Large Blue life cycle in detail by obtaining the necessary permissions and helping with the livestock. The results have been amazing, and includes a rarely-seen sequence of a first instar larva burrowing into a Thyme flower bud. Very deserving winners.

Greenwings Wildlife Holidays have recently updated their list of butterfly and moth watching holidays for 2019, with 10% of the profits from the trips going to Butterfly Conservation in order to help fund UK and European conservation work.

We are delighted to announce Greenwings Wildlife Holidays as UK Butterflies sponsor. Greenwings is a conservation-minded organisation who are corporate members of Butterfly Conservation, which they support in a number of ways, including through sales of their butterfly holidays.

A report for a Greenwings Wildlife Holidays trip to Montes Universales, Spain, 28 July - 4 August 2018 is now available. Click here to read the report.

A report for a Greenwings Wildlife Holidays trip to Alpes Maritimes and Queyras regions, June 27th to July 13th 2018 is now available. Click here to read the report.

A report for a Greenwings Wildlife Holidays trip to Pyrenées Orientales - 21st to 30th May 2018 is now available. Click here to read the report.

A previously extinct butterfly will fly in its former English stronghold for the first time in more than 40 years as part of the ambitious conservation project, Back from the Brink. Butterfly Conservation, working in partnership with the Forestry Commission has released Chequered Skipper butterflies in Rockingham Forest, Northamptonshire, as part of the project. Click here for more information.

From the publisher: Articles in the magazine cover: Butterflies in the Picos Mountains in Spain, the Val Rabbi Mountains in Northern Italy and the mountains in Graubünden in Switzerland. There are special features on Hairstreaks in Spain, the Violet Copper in France and the Poplar Admiral in Switzerland. Butterflies in the spring are described in South East France and lowland butterflies are covered in Geneva in Switzerland. A Greenwings butterfly holiday in Romania is featured. Click here to read the review.

From the publisher: A fully revised second edition of the most detailed, comprehensive and user-friendly photographic field guide to the butterflies of Mexico and Central America, written by Jeffrey Glassberg, the pioneering authority on the field identification of butterflies. Click here to read the review by Guy Padfield.

Started in 2002, today saw the 10 millionth visit to the UK Butterflies website! This is a significant milestone and so a big thanks to the UKB team, members and everyone who has provided support and suggestions over the years.

The 50th anniversary edition of Butterfly, Butterfly Conservation's magazine is now out. As usual, plenty of news and also excellent articles that includes articles by Nick Baker, Kate Bradbury, Richard Fox, Dan Hoare and Peter Marren. Not a Butterfly Conservation member? Click here to enter the Butterfly Conservation website where you can find joining instructions.

From the publisher: First of its kind, this new guide features many of the large, spectacular insects a visitor to southern Europe and the Mediterranean is likely to encounter. All the major insect groups of this region are covered in its 416 pages, including many endemic species. A magnificent and colourful insight into the insect fauna of this region. Click here to read the review by Guy Padfield.

A declining butterfly may have started breeding in Scotland for the first time in 130 years, after eggs were discovered by amateur naturalists. A handful of White-letter Hairstreak eggs were found on Wych Elm trees at Lennel near Coldstream, Berwickshire, on Sunday 4 February. The discovery comes after Borders Butterfly Recorder Iain Cowe spotted an adult White-letter Hairstreak about 10 miles north east of this area last year - the first sighting in Scotland since 1884. Click here for more details.

Each year Butterfly Conservation hosts a conference for butterfly recorders in the UK. The UK Butterfly Recorders' Meeting on 24th March provides the latest information on butterfly trends from the national recording and monitoring schemes, new research findings from scientists, feedback from butterfly recorders across the UK and plenty of time to relax and chat over a buffet lunch with fellow enthusiasts. Click here for more details.