Glasgow and SW Scotland Branch of Butterfly Conservation
Conserving and Recording the butterflies & moths of SW Scotland
The Glasgow & SW Scotland branch area now has 34 species of butterfly after the recent arrival from England of the Small & Essex Skippers. There is currently no definitive list of moths for the branch area but being the most southerly of the three Scotland branches, the Glasgow & SW Scotland branch very likely has the greatest number of species.
The branch area includes Dumfries & Galloway, Ayrshire, Greater Glasgow, Stirlingshire, Argyll, the Argyll islands, Dunbartonshire & Loch Lomond. This includes Scotland's first National Park: Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park. These regions include a diverse range of landscapes providing a range of habitats from the fertile central lowlands and coastal parts of Ayrshire/Dumfries & Galloway to the moorland of more inland areas of these counties and to the rugged mountain scenery of the southern highlands and Argyll and to the unique scenery and habitats of the Argyll islands.
This diversity of habitats in the branch area is reflected in the distribution of some butterflies and moths. For example, the Mountain Ringlet is only found at altitudes above 300m in the southern Highlands, the Scotch Argus is not found in lowland areas of the branch area except in Argyll where it is found down to sea level. There are some spectacular moths of moorland in the branch area including the Emperor Moth, the Northern Eggar & Great Brocade.
The key butterfly species in the branch area are the Chequered Skipper & Marsh Fritillary in parts of Argyll, the Large Heath which lives in lowland and blanket bogs in various parts of SW Scotland, the Pearl-bordered Fritillary which has an important stronghold in Argyll and the Mountain Ringlet in the southern highlands.
The key moth species are the burnet moths of Argyll and the Argyll islands - Slender Scotch Burnet; New Forest Burnet & Transparent Burnet - and other western species including the Barred Tooth-Stripe, Square Spotted Clay, Argent & Sable & Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk Moth.
PEARL-BORDERED FRITILLARY SURVEYS IN SCOTLAND 2008
The first Pearl-bordered Fritillaries are now on the wing in Argyll (first sighting 5 May, Creagan Wood, Loch Creran, Argyll) and will soon be on the wing in other parts of Scotland too. The next few weeks comprise the short flight period of this UK BAP species and volunteers are needed to go out and do timed counts in all three branch areas.
A recent assessment of the Pearl-bordered Fritillary records in Scotland has identified about 270 different sites with the caveat that some of them may be the similar Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary.
However, many of these sites have not been visited in the last five years according to Butterfly Conservation Scotland's records, and some have not been visited for several decades. The west highlands has a particularly high number of sites (69) requiring surveys. In the Glasgow & SW Scotland branch area, sixteen sites in Dumfries & Galloway need surveying in the next few weeks together with searching for Pearl-bordered Fritillary in various parts of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park. Please click here for more information on the sites needing surveying in all three branch regions.
VOLUNTEER BUTTERFLY SURVEYORS IN GLASGOW WANTED!
The Biodiversity In Glasgow(BIG) Project commenced in 2007 and it aim is to investigate the birds and butteflies in Glasgow's green spaces. Now it is in its second year but volunteer butterfly surveyors for 22 BIG sites are still needed so please get involved if you live in Glasgow. Four visits are required during the summer: mid-May to mid-June; mid-June to mid-July; mid-July to mid-August; and mid-August to mid-September. The sites are shown here and some are suitable for those with little experience of butterflies, a few require more experienced surveyors.
If you would like to volunteer or want more info, please contact Tom Prescott:
The BIG Project Spring 2008 newsletter is available here
WATCH FOR MIGRANTS - PAINTED LADY & HUMMING-BIRD HAWK MOTH
The Painted Lady Butterfly and Humming-bird Hawk-moth are arriving from Africa and becoming increasingly common in the UK. To find out just how common, we need your help. If you have seen either the Humming-bird Hawk-moth or the Painted Lady since the start of 2008, please follow the links and help us track the impact of climate change on migration.
Read more and record your sightings....
PEACOCK SPOTTERS REQUIRED!
Before 2000, the Peacock butterfly was only found in around less than 30% of Scotland. Since then, it has spread far further afield. The Peacock is now found in over half of the country. It has taken advantage of warmer weather and has even colonised the Highlands. Peacock butterflies have even been found hibernating in a peat stack in the Western Isles.
Now Butterfly Conservation Scotland is asking the public’s help to monitor its progress. The movements of the Peacock demonstrate the impact that the warming climate is having on wildlife. Read more...
BUTTERFLY SURVEYS 2008
In 2008, there are four species specific butterfly surveys being organised in the Glasgow & SW Scotland branch area which need volunteers to get involved. So if you fancy a day or two out in Scotland’s fantastic highland scenery surveying some wonderful butterflies this summer, please see Butterfly Surveys 2008
EVENTS 2008
There are a number of events organised this summer in the branch area covering both butterflies & moths and including National Moth Night & Day 2008. Please see the Events 2008 page.
ARGYLL MOTH RECORDING 2008
There is now a dedicated page on moth trapping in Argyll (see Argyll Moth Recording) which shows up-to-date moth data for some sites where moth trapping is regular and this will provide an identification aid for moth-trappers in Argyll.
SEASON 2008....
11/05/08: Last weeks warm sunny weather resulted in some more first butterfly sightings for 2008: Pearl-bordered Fritillary; Wall; & Holly Blue (see 2008 Sightings). The fine weather also resulted in some good moth catches in Argyll. The most exciting result was finding the UK BAP species, Barred Tooth-Striped, at two new sites: Creagan Wood & Glen Nant NNR. In addition, many new species for 2008 appeared: Pebble Prominent; Pale Shouldered Brocade; Knot Grass; Rivulet; Silver-Ground Carpet; Small Angle Shades; Peach Blossom etc. See Argyll Moth Recording for more details.
02/05/08: April has seen first sightings for Orange Tip, Green-veined White, Large White & Green Hairstreak being recorded (see 2008 Sightings). The Small White has yet to be recorded and other species to look out for in May are Pearl-bordered Fritillary (see Butterfly Surveys 2008) in various parts of the branch region, Chequered Skipper in northern Argyll, Speckled Wood in Argyll generally and the Small Copper almost anywhere in the branch region.
20/04/08: Recent days have seen some fine sunny weather in western Scotland and a male Orange tip was seen at Loch Creran Argyll on 18 April (see 2008 Sightings). Moth activity is picking up with Engrailed, Early Thorn, Brown Silver Lines, Early Toothed Stripe, Early Grey being recorded in Argyll together with an abundance of Quakers: Common Quaker; Clouded Drab; Twin Spotted Quaker & Hebrew Character. The UK BAP species, Barred Tooth Stripe was found at Glasdrum Wood Nature Reserve where it has been recorded before.
12/04/08: What a difference 2008 is to the very early spring phenology of 2007! April 2007 comfortably broke long term UK temperature records as the warmest April on record and both butterflies and moths were active incredibly early. By this date in 2007, seven butterfly species had been seen (Peacock; Small Tortoiseshell; Red Admiral; Orange Tip; Small White; Green-veined White & Comma: see 2007 Sightings) whereas just three species have been seen so far in 2008 (see 2008 Sightings).
On the moth front, there has been little activity so far owing to the predominantly cold conditions over the last month while in 2007, the earliest dates for some spring species were obtained.
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