Big Butterfly Count 2026
This year our count took place on the 21st July, a fortnight earlier than the previous year, in the hope of finding a wider array of species. It was a sunny day which was hopeful. The surveys require a timed count of butterflies for 15 minutes, and these took place a little before the guided butterfly walk, so that there would be plenty of time to linger, answer questions and to study individual species in more depth during the walk itself.
Two timed surveys were carried out, one in the conservation area, and one in the rest of the cemetery where the grass has been cut. 49 individual butterflies were seen in the conservation area across three species. 47 of these were gatekeepers, very common on ragwort and by some of the bushes. A speckled wood and a large white were also seen, as well as the spectacular jersey tiger, a moth whose range has expanded enormously on the Island over the last thirty years. Over the same length of time 16 butterflies across just two species were found in the cut area, of which 15 were gatekeepers (seven on a single clump of marjoram), and there was a single meadow brown.
These results were a little disappointing and so it was a real pleasure to find that there was so much more to be seen, on the well-supported walk. We focussed entirely on the conservation area and amassed a grand total of twelve butterfly species: (only the meadow brown was not seen from earlier in the day, possibly because it was favouring the shorter grass, in the other parts of the cemetery). Once again gatekeepers were easily the commonest species, with common blue being the second commonest sighting. From the same family we found a couple of holly blues, a small copper and Ian Pratt was able to find some brown argus in the grass close to the Dashwood memorial. A ringlet, four small whites and a small heath were seen. Two species, painted lady and clouded yellow are migratory and are having a good year on the Island and so it was encouraging to find both here, the painted ladies looking particularly fresh. The jersey tiger was found again, and gave some excellent views, and a couple of six-spot burnets were found, (another colourful moth-species, although we failed to spot their distinctive larval cases on the grass in the cemetery). All in all it was a very successful and enjoyable morning where we learned much from one another, and really benefitted from a lot of sharp-sighted members.
Richard Smout
(President)
Photographs of the various species can be found on our Nature Page HERE
Images by Ian Pratt & John Maskell