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Chequered Skippers - Taking Flight. 21st March: Beyond the butterflies – how helping one species can help another
Often falsely vilified, Adders are a shy and sensitive species. Identified by the zig-zag pattern down their body, the males tend to have a black zig-zag on a grey background, whereas females have a paler zig-zag and a more caramel background. This differentiates them from our other native snake species, the Grass Snake and Smooth Snake. There are in fact six native reptile species in the UK!
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Chequered Skippers - Taking Flight. 31st March: Susannah’s Transect Training
Over the last two weeks we have run three training events, with the hopes to inspire more people to take action for butterflies! After a morning of learning how to identify our Northamptonshire butterflies, along lots of handy tips from Susannah, we then headed out to some local woods to practice surveying for real.
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Chequered Skippers - Taking Flight. March: Skipper Rangers Join the Team
Spring begins at Fineshade Wood – from a smattering of Dog Violets and Common Primroses, the forest floor has transformed over the past few weeks, with the Lesser Celandine and Wood Sorrel appearing, followed by a white carpet of Wood Anenomes. And such a transformation has begun above our heads; the trees! From mainly greys and bare branches, to now predominantly lush green. Spring is in full force!
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Chequered Skippers - Taking Flight. 18th of March: Visit to Old Sulehay forest and Stonepit Close quarry 18/3
We had a great day today visiting Old Sulehay and Stonepit Close sites to see the work done by the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust (BCN Wildlife Trust) to encourage butterflies, namely the Grizzled and Dingy Skipper, with hope one day our Chequered Skipper will make the jump to this site too.
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Summer Holidays Adventures
While teachers may be exhaling a sigh of well-earned relief, now that the summer holidays are upon us parents and guardians alike may all be after affordable and fun activities children can get involved with over the next few weeks. Below are some accessible and free things you can do to keep your little ones entertained.
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Small space, small budget
Our blog this month comes from Butterfly Conservation’s Supporting Science Officer Rachael Conway, who has led the relaunch of Garden Butterfly Survey this year.
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Don’t get the blues from the Blues: a guide to identifying blue species of butterflies.
How can you tell apart the different types of Blue butterfly species? For some, this is the million-dollar question that can cost hours in agonising confusion. So we have put together this guide to save the day and help you see the subtle differences which will enable you to identify these beautiful blues with ease.
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Citizen Science: The Impact of the Individual
Citizen science, also known as community science, is a partnership approach that involves volunteers in scientific data gathering and research.
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Beyond good feelings: the extensive benefits of being outside on our health and wellbeing
Professor Christopher Loynes Ph.D., University of Cumbria tells us about the benefits to our health and wellbeing for getting outside and where he will be doing his Big Butterfly Count this year.
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How to stay safe this Big Butterfly Count
The Government has issued a red weather warning to warn everyone about the extreme sun heading our way this July. While plenty of us wish to enjoy the heatwave, it’s important that we look after ourselves and each other. If you’re out doing your Big Butterfly Count, here are some things to remember in order to stay safe.
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How getting outside helps your health and wellbeing
Whether sitting in a park or going on a hike, getting outside can benefit our physical and mental health as well as our social lives.
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Big Butterfly Count: A Written Guide to Spotting our Species
For any newcomers, or those needing to brush up on the campaign, here is a brief guide to spotting butterflies.
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10 Fun Facts about the Butterflies and Moths you can spot this Big Butterfly Count
Here are 10 facts about some of the amazing butterflies and moths on your Big Butterfly Count ID Checklist that may help you when looking out for and identifying them!
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6 Reasons to get involved in the Big Butterfly Count 2022
Thinking about taking part in the Big Butterfly Count? Here are 6 reasons why you should!
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LGBTQ+ Contribution to Climate Justice and Fighting Climate Crisis
While intersectional issues with climate change is a huge topic, this blog provides an insight into the relationship between the LGBTQ+ community and the fight for climate change and explores how we cannot fight against climate change without social justice.
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Get your garden ready for the Big Butterfly Count!
As we head towards the Big Butterfly Count, we've got some top tips for attracting butterflies to your garden this summer.
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Hope for the future of once extinct population of UK Chequered Skipper butterflies
Following the most successful ever translocation of Chequered Skipper butterflies from Belgium to England, ZSL (Zoological Society of London)’s wildlife veterinarian, Dr Tammy Shadbolt talks about her experience as part of a team working on a four-year project to bring them back from extinction.
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LGBTQ+ Representation in Conservation
One way to support PRIDE is by increasing the visibility of the contributions to Conservation, and beyond, that people from the LGBTQ+ community have made.
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Butterfly Conservation: Interview with Bradley Neal (He/They) on being LGBTQ+ in the field of Conservation
Interview with Bradley Neal (He/They) on being LGBTQ+ in the field of Conservation.
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Dig it: The Secret Gardener encourages us to make small changes to help butterflies and moths this June
The Secret Gardener reveals some of the best ways to help butterflies and moths this June. Hint: one involves tea...!
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Resources for LGBTQ+ Conservationists
In honour of PRIDE, we recognise that LGBTQ+ people can benefit from networks in order to feel safe, welcome, and have a sense of belonging. We have compiled a list of LGBTQ+ community networks and resources for those working in Conservation and STEM.
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Dig it: Transforming a village in the Scottish Highlands into a haven for butterflies
This month our Secret Gardener has heard from a volunteer who's been making her village in the Scottish Highlands a haven for butterflies and creating lots of Pitstops for Pollinators.
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Woodland and hedgerow creation crucial for pollinators
A major new study of hundreds of different sites has revealed the types of habitats where pollinating bees, hoverflies and butterflies are most abundant.
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Crossing borders
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, Butterfly Conservation remains active overseas to help butterflies and moths.
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Why 'Being More Brimstone' resonated with me, by Lisa Joynes
The 'Be More Brimstone' article featured in the latest Butterfly magazine received some moving feedback, which we publish with the permission of the author in the hope that it will help others.
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Kate Bradbury - What you can do for nature
Kate Bradbury is a gardening expert and has authored a number of books including The Wildlife Gardener, as well as appearing on the BBC’s Springwatch. Here, in an article written for Butterfly in Spring 2020, Kate gives her tips for creating a wildlife garden of your own.
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Go wild for wildflowers
Butterflies are declining more rapidly in urban areas than in the countryside. One way we can support our local pollinators – whether rural or urban – is by sowing wildflower seeds.
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Give a corner of your garden back to butterflies
Don’t just plant to look pretty, plant with purpose! We want as many people as possible to turn their green space into a habitat that will help butterflies thrive. But we’re also aware that a lot of first-time gardeners don’t always know where to start. We can help.
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Plight of the Swallowtail
Research on the Swallowtail and its host plant reveals some of the challenges the species is facing and how we can try to help it.