The warm air moving north from Africa provides perfect moth weather. Moths, 95% of which are night-flying, need warmth to fly, just as their day-flying counterparts do. When I headed toward Lullymore, Kildare at 6 am to see what our catch was, the air temperature was 18 Celsius. Expectations of a high abundance and species diversity were high and fulfilled. The provisional figures for species are 130, including the extreme rarity, Suspected Parastichtis suspecta. The Flame Axylia putris, a common species, was particularly abundant. It is enjoying a good year in the region.
Let me see! It is great to get that quick photo, because some moths don’t pose for long.
A wonderful feature of our event was the age range and the enthusiasm of everyone present. Children, college students and older adults were crowded around packed moth traps, enthusiasm barely contained as event leader Philip Strickland carefully inspected individual egg cartons, and Conor recorded the moth list.
Part of Conor’s moth list…
Three Robinson traps were opened at the wonderful Bog of Allen Nature Centre, Lullymore, and portable traps at Lullymore West Bog were checked earlier in the morning. Last year was quite a poor one for moths, except for the autumn period. Moth populations look better this year, but are not as high as they were in the area in 2012, the last time we trapped in the area. They might need another year to recover.
Robinson Moth Trap showing moths settled in egg cartons.The Elephant Hawkmoth, a popular moth, especially with children.The Shark, an example of adaptive coloration and structure, is an intriguing moth.The Swallow-tail moth is a lovely and delicate moth with a short flight period.
After the traps were checked and moths recorded and photographed, we had refreshments upstairs in the centre before our training on moth trapping and identification. The slide show covered the ecological importance of moths, showed the most common species and a few notable rare species, such as Burren Green Calamia tridens, moth trapping techniques, recording and licensing requirements.
Moth trapping and recording training at the Bog of Allen Nature Centre, Lullymore.
Robinson moth traps and moth guides purchased with the support of the Heritage Council grant to Butterfly Conservation Ireland were provided to enthusiastic Butterfly Conservation Ireland members. They are looking forward to trapping and recording moths. One of the great pleasures of moth trapping is the excitement of seeing so many ‘surprises.’ We see species never encountered in daylight, despite being present in our gardens and wilder places. There are 1505 species in Ireland, so there is so much to discover.
This Narrow-bordered Bee Hawkmoth caterpillar was shown at the event. Some moth caterpillars are hard to find, but this is one of the more findable larvae. It feeds on Devil’s-bit Scabious leaves typically in June and July.
One never tires of the magic of moths. Their colour, patterning, shape, and size range are simply mesmerically complex. Their occupancy of differing habitats makes them among the most comprehensive of ecological health indicators. If you enjoy nature and care about conservation, you need to learn more about moths!
Thanks are due to Philip Strickland for setting the traps and leading the event, to Richella Duggan for promoting the event, to Nuala Madigan of the Irish Peatland Conservation Council for providing the venue and refreshments, everyone who attended and to the Heritage Council for their generous financial support for the event and purchase of moth traps and the projector used for the training.
Butterfly Conservation Ireland invites Butterfly Conservation Ireland members and the members of the public to a Moth Morning at the Bog of Allen Nature Centre, Lullymore, Rathangan, Co. Kildare.
The Lilac Beauty lives up to its name. The crimpled forewing adds interest and variety to its outline.
This event is generously supported by a grant from The Heritage Council. The Heritage Council are supporting the purchase of a projector, moth traps, and moth identification guides to support the study, distribution mapping and abundance recording of our moth populations.
The Green Silver-lines is one of our target species.
Moths are a mystery to most of us. Seen as shadowy and destructive by some, they are very important pollinators and vital to the healthy functioning of our ecosystems, so it is important to know more about them. Many species are also extremely beautiful, and only a tiny number of scarce species nibble on our clothes.
This event will be used to introduce moths and to train aspiring moth trappers to trap, identify, record and log records of moths. The outdoor opening of the moth traps will be followed by a slide show indoors.
EVENT DETAILS
When
Saturday, 28th June 2025: Meeting at 7:00 am.
Where
Bog of Allen Nature Centre, Lullymore, Rathangan, Co. Kildare, R51 V293.
How to Get There
The site is reached from Allenwood by taking the R414 west and crossing Shee Bridge 1km from Allenwood on the left. Continue for 4 km. The Bog of Allen Nature Centre is on the right. Turn right and enter the car park. The venue has plenty of parking. A grid reference for the car park is N 70571 25876. See Discovery Series 49.
The Swallow-tailed moth is one of the moths we hope to see in Lullymore.
In a study published by the British Museum, the Republic of Ireland was ranked 13th from the bottom out of 240 countries for biodiversity intactness (Natural History Museum, 2020). Northern Ireland was ranked one place above. The Biodiversity Intactness Index (BII) measures biodiversity change using abundance data on plants, fungi and animals worldwide. The Index illustrates how local terrestrial biodiversity responds to human pressures, including land use change and intensification. The Biodiversity Intactness Index summarises the change in ecological communities in response to human pressures. The BII is an estimated percentage of the original number of species that remain and their abundance in any given area, despite human impacts. The BII is calculated using data from ecological studies conducted worldwide. This data includes more than 54,000 species, encompassing not only birds and mammals, the groups most often used in biodiversity indicators but also plants, fungi and insects.
The destruction of bogs on state land continues in 2025; this bog lies immediately west of the Crabtree River, Co. Kildare.
Ireland has exceeded six of the seven biospherical boundaries (CO2 emissions, material and ecological footprints, land use change and phosphorus and nitrogen) (Murphy 2023), leading to significant adverse impacts on nature and biodiversity. The Biodiversity Intactness Index ranks Ireland in the bottom 10% globally (Natural History Museum, 2020). A key driving factor is habitat loss, as Ireland – similar to the UK – spent two centuries converting land to pasture to support increased livestock numbers (CSO, 2015). National agriculture policy accelerated increases in cattle and sheep in the 1970s, with cattle levels now at record highs. Agriculture occupies 67% of the territory, and Ireland has the second lowest level of terrestrial protected area in the EU at 13.9%, less than half the 30% target by 2030 (EEA, 2023). Other drivers of biodiversity loss include invasive species, pollution, and climate change. Consequently, natural habitats are virtually non-existent in Ireland, and many semi-natural habitats continue to be impacted by human activities.
What are we doing to halt Biodiversity Loss?
In 2019, the national parliament voted to declare both a national Climate and Biodiversity Emergency and in 2023, the Citizen’s Assembly and the Children and Young People’s Assemblies urged the state to take decisive and urgent action. The 2017–2021 biodiversity plan was critiqued for its lack of SMART targets (targets that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) and KPIs (Key Performance Indicators). The new plan (2024) aims to address this with clear implementable actions and a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, with an audit role for the National Biodiversity Forum. The new Biodiversity Action Plan has been on a statutory footing since 2023, with binding goals. However, existing policies and practices in other areas, including agriculture, may inhibit action without a systemic approach.
Nature needs a helping hand.
A Hammer Blow
Indeed, there is evidence for this at the Teagasc conference on extensive grasslands held in Birr, County Offaly, on June 12th. While good practice was described by a number of speakers to an audience of environmentally conscious farmers, the final address, by the Director of Teagasc, Frank O’Mara was a hammer blow to anyone feeling optimistic under the influence of the previous speakers. The Director extolled the economic importance of Perennial Rye-grass monocultures, stating it was vital to the Irish economy and would continue to be a cornerstone of Irish agriculture. This cornerstone produces massive bulk for feeding livestock but only with massive chemical inputs that damage our soils, water, air and biodiversity. This effectively treats soil as dirt, waterways as sewers and turns air into toxic gas.
Meadow Brown is plummeting. The Victorian C.G. Barrett wrote, “There is hardly a grassy field in the United Kingdom from which it is entirely absent.” This cannot be said today.
Anyone who doubts the Director’s avowal of intensive farming is well supported should look at the diminishing abundance of Ireland’s butterfly populations. ‘Plummeting’ is not hyperbole. The Meadow Brown is down 86% from its 2008 abundance over the period 2008-2021; the Green-veined White is down 87.2%, and the Ringlet fell by 88%. All are widespread grassland species, showing widescale decline.
Woodland and Grassland Loss
Let’s look at just two habitat classes, woodland and grassland. Native woodland has almost disappeared. Ireland has no large forest. Only 2% of the land area of the Republic of Ireland contains native woodland. And we are still not learning. We continue to favour non-native trees for plantations. The Tree Council of Ireland proudly displayed a poster of trees grown in Ireland at the Bloom Festival in early June. Lodgepole Pine, Sitka Spruce and Sycamore had pride of place. The lady at their information stand insisted these trees were good for nature. This is utterly wrong, as far as Ireland’s ecosystems are concerned. Native trees, grown from native sources, are good for biodiversity. Non-native Sycamore feeds two of Ireland’s macro-moths (larger moths). Native Grey Willow, regarded as a weed by foresters, feeds about 121 macro-moths. Our native oaks support an astonishing number of species. The Purple Hairstreak butterfly and 71 macro-moths breed on oak. UK research found 1,178 invertebrate species using oak, and 257 invertebrates rely solely on our two native oaks. This does not include birds, bats, lichens or mosses using the oaks (Environmental Information Data Centre, 2019).
Dry-humid acid grassland, Lullybeg, Kildare. Note the dry, dead grass litter which creates a warm micro-climate which helps invertebrates to develop.
We still have semi-natural grasslands, but these are vanishing, just as our native woods were eliminated, and farming is the main cause of their removal. The Irish Semi-natural Grassland Survey 2007-2012 visited 1,200 sites (O’Neill et al., 2013). A subset of the sites (c.110 sites) were revisited during 2015-2017. Between the two surveys 31% of the area of species-rich calcareous grasslands, 28% of lowland hay meadows and 7% of Molinia (Purple Moor-Grass) meadows were gone. Fifty-seven of these were species-rich calcareous grasslands. Forty-nine per cent of these had lost area and three sites had gone completely. 65 hectares of habitat were lost overall. These are priority habitats, listed in the EU Habitats Directive as requiring protection.
Irish Semi-Natural Grassland Survey: facts at a glance.
What are the main threats to these grasslands? Habitat loss is due to intensive agriculture (fertilisation and re-seeding), forestry and construction and land abandonment which is less dramatic and immediate but is occurring over large areas (O’Neill et al., 2013).
Sixty-seven per cent of the land area of the Republic of Ireland is farmed, up from 64% in 2014 (CSO, 2014). This means that the way farming is carried out is crucial. If farmers continue to apply herbicides, pesticides, fertilisers, drainage, re-seeding and scrub clearing then our climate, soil, water and air pollution will continue to deteriorate, and biodiversity will continue to be lost.
The Director of Teagasc was correct. Who cares about life on earth when massive chemical-mediated production on degraded grassland makes $$$?
References
Citizens’ Assembly. 2023. Report of the Citizens Assembly on Biodiversity Loss. Dublin: Government Publications.
DHLGH. 2024. Ireland’s 4th National Bio-Diversity Action Plan 2023-2030. Government of Ireland.
European Environment Agency. 2023. “Terrestrial Protected Areas in Europe.” https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/indicators/terrestrial-protected-areas-in-europe?activeAccordion=546a7c35-9188-4d23-94ee-005d97c26f2b
Government of Ireland. 2022. Public Consultation on Ireland’s 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan 2021-2027. Government of Ireland.
Harding, J. & Lysaght, L. (Eds.)(2025) An Atlas of Butterflies in Ireland 2010-2021. The National Biodiversity Data Centre, Waterford.
NPWS. 2022. National Biodiversity Action Plan 2017-2021. DHLGH. https://www.npws.ie/legislation/national-biodiversity-plan
O’Neill, F.H., Martin, J.R., Devaney, F.M. & Perrin, P.M. (2013) The Irish semi-natural grasslands survey 2007-2012. Irish Wildlife Manuals, No. 78. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Ireland.
There is little point in claiming dull, overcast weather is better for butterfly walks. However, muted brightness often reveals sights that bright light obscures, reminiscent of a line in a hymn: ‘Tis only the splendour of light hideth thee.’ (Smith, 1867).
Perhaps a calmer mindset prevails in the naturalist, engendering closer scrutiny, a slow time when one pauses, searches, and seeks clues to whereabouts. A nibbled leaf, an irregular shape, a pair of antennae, or a rustle hyper-focuses the senses.
Insects one cannot get close to in hot weather are suddenly approachable. How else would one get a close view of this female Emperor? Usually soaring imperiously above one’s head, then darting dramatically in an unexpected direction, there is no chance of obtaining a photograph.
An immature female Emperor Dragonfly was resting on grassland at Lullybeg today. Strangely, she was close to a Four-spotted Chaser, which she could have destroyed instantly by decapitation.
We enjoyed photographing the empress before she managed to warm her flight muscles and escape our cameras. A search of the two buckthorn species revealed Brimstone caterpillars. Look at the following photos.
These caterpillars were found in adjoining bushes. The size difference points to the timing of egg-laying, indicating the eggs being laid over weeks by the same generation of females, and possibly, but improbably, by the same female. The adult butterfly will fly over several weeks in the summer, typically starting in mid-July (occasionally early in July in a warm year like this) and ending in early or mid-September. Occasionally adults are seen late in September or early October. In most years, mid-July to early September is the time to watch the adults. The adults you see in mid-July are the first to hatch from their pupae, represented by the largest caterpillar above. The adults you encounter later in mid-August are likely the result of the later laid eggs, represented by the first instar caterpillar. The adults that emerged in July will probably be hibernating by mid-August; no butterfly that must survive several months of cool weather can expose itself for several weeks.
When warmer weather arrives in spring, the first Brimstones to wake are the males. Females begin to appear about a week later and mating quickly follows. Long-lived females will lay their eggs over several weeks, usually from April.
Spring butterflies ‘know’ that spring weather can be erratic. Conditions like those this spring, with most days of unbroken sunshine, are rare. Spring flyers can take advantage of brief good weather, and even today we saw Marsh Fritillaries on the wing and found a number on grassland ready to act if the temperature allowed.
A male Marsh Fritillary resting on a scabious leaf in Lullybeg, where I filmed final instar caterpillars in April.
Other creatures drew our attention too. Marbled White-spot and plume moths caught eyes usually attuned to seeking larger, more colourful fare. The lovely flora of the area was also enjoyed, and our two-hour ramble sent us home happy.
Rough Hawkbit. Lullybeg. This is a key nectar source.Common Milkwort is a pretty flower and very popular with pollinators despite its smallness. This is the larval foodplant for the Small Purple-barred moth.A Common Green Grasshopper nymph; it is very common in Lullybeg.A striking greenbottle fly (Lucilia genus). This is likely the tachinid fly Gymnochaeta viridis. The female searches grassland vegetation for tussock-dwelling moth caterpillars including the noctuids Photedes minima (Small Dotted Buff), P. pygmina (Small Wainscot) and Mesapamea secalis (Common Rustic), also the geometrid Scotopteryx chenopodiata (Shaded Broad-bar). The fly larva feeds on these larvae. Thanks to Brian Nelson (National Parks and Wildlife Service ) for identifying the fly.
The magic ingredient for a butterfly event outdoors is warmth and sunshine and the weekend of the 17th and 18th of May provided this magic. Bright, unbroken sunshine and the temperature peaking at 24 and 25 Celsius allowed butterflies and day-flying moths to fly at any time during the day. Butterflies do not usually fly throughout the day. They feed, rest, shelter, bask, mate and lay eggs as well as flying.
I was a little fearful that the prolonged fine weather might have brought an early closure to the flight period of the Pearl-bordered Fritillary but happily, this butterfly put in a great display, glowing deep orange in crystal Burren sunshine.
What is also key to the success of any outing is the people taking part. The enthusiastic group on both days sparked the atmosphere nicely, adding to the excitement of being in beautiful habitats in sublime weather. At Fahee North we sampled the butterflies in a site containing calcareous grassland, limestone heath, exposed limestone pavement, humid/wet grassland/marsh and scrub. The adjoining site holds open scrub on limestone pavement with dry calcareous grassland. This site, which holds a holy well, has long been notable for its Pearl-bordered Fritillary population. It must be emphasised that the habitats are protected by Burrenbeo Trust volunteers controlling, but not eliminating scrub.
Scrub is a vital part of the habitats and must be retained. The image below shows a larval nest of Small Eggar caterpillars on Blackthorn that is part of a patch of roadside scrub. This moth has been recorded in just 34 10 km squares since 2000, 15 of these are in or near the Burren. We enjoyed observing the to-ing and fro-ing of the heat-excited caterpillars. In the hottest part of the day, most had retreated to the interior of their web.
Small Eggar nest, Fahee, Co. Clare.
We were delighted to see so many Marsh Fritillaries on the grassland and heath. This is the earliest I have seen them in the Burren. We have males skirmishing, briefly and the more sedate females keeping a discreet difference. These had mated already so the males were of no interest to the females who were preparing to lay their first and largest egg load or were flying with the freedom that comes with significant weight loss, feeding and maturing a second egg batch. Common Blues were lesser in number but showy, bringing their sky-blue shimmer to the scene. Small Heath bobbed about the fescue tussocks, flashing their bright orange uppersides at us.
Marsh Fritillary on Bloody Cranesbill, Fahee, Co. Clare.
We moved onto the limestone pavement and soon Pearl-bordered Fritillaries appeared. Some were caught and placed in jars to be admired and released. Several moths were netted. I saw my first-ever Burren Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet along with Six-spot and Transparent Burnets (known from just four counties, mainly in Clare), all symbols of pristine, undamaged habitats. A spectacular day-flier, the Wood Tiger, was also netted and displayed, to the delight of all. It is a beautiful species and is probably uncommon everywhere it still occurs. It is listed as Near Threatened and has not been recorded in 17 counties in the Republic of Ireland since 2000. Speckled Yellow, which looks like a butterfly was also sighted. It rarely poses for photographs, alas! It has not been reported from 20 counties on the island of Ireland. When you see it in abundance in the Burren, don’t take this for granted. The Dew moth was also a welcome sight. This gem has been returned from just three counties: Clare, Galway and Mayo. It is in good hands in the Burren, as long as its habitat is not molested.
Cinnabar moth on limestone pavement, Fahee, Co. Clare.Exploring the Hazel scrub on limestone, Fahee, Co. Clare.Transparent Burnet on Bloody Cranesbill, Fahee, Co. Clare.The Dew moth was found on limestone at Fahee, Co. Clare.The Small Blue flies in different areas in the Burren but appears to be more common in the western Burren.This Blue Gentian was found along the Ballyvaughan Loop walk (Co. Clare), at a higher altitude. The gentians in low-lying areas have completed their flowering.
Sunday meant a later start but we made the most of the additional time with some exploring the nearby Cahercommaun ring fort. The surrounding calcareous grassland and Hazel scrub are rich in butterflies. The easy exploration allowed by the Clooncoose Valley Green Road is one benefit. This is surely Ireland’s Butterfly Road. The traffic can be congested and casualties occur with the area’s predators knowing that rich pickings are available. We watched a Hairy Dragonfly pounce on a male Marsh Fritillary, carrying the hapless victim in its vice-grip jaws. A collective dismay engulfed the group. The road teemed with dragonflies, mostly Black-tailed Skimmer, Hairy Dragonfly and Four-spotted Chaser.
One area adjoining the road, a clearing in the scrub, was being used as a lek site by Small Heath butterflies. Watching the males display to catch a lady’s eye was intriguing. This is the first time I have seen this behaviour in this pretty little butterfly. I netted both, showed one to the group and when released he returned to his lekking site to continue with his competitive display.
The road offers a route through a large area, from near the Gort road to Cahercommaun and some butterflies using this infrastructure do not breed along the route; Marsh Fritillary and Pearl-bordered Fritillary seem to use it to move through the area and seek mates.
A female Marsh Fritillary basks on the Burren limestone. This vulnerable butterfly was plentiful at Fahee North and Clooncoose. This individual was sighted at Cahercommaun Ring Fort before the Clooncoose walk began.
The Pearl-bordered Fritillary occurs only in the Burren, occupying just ten 10 km squares, mainly in the east Burren, in open scrub on limestone. It was only discovered in 1922, in Clooncoose. It remains in place hopefully never to be removed.
Male Pearl-bordered Fritillary on buttercup.A view of the Green Road in Clooncoose Valley looking east.Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, like this male, enjoy basking on limestone. The males and females were highly active on Saturday (Fahee) and Sunday (Clooncoose).
Thanks to everyone who helped, including those who spotted and netted butterflies, moths and dragonflies and especially to the lady who baked me a cake, another magic ingredient!
The long days of bright sunshine during March and April accelerated the development of the Marsh Fritillary caterpillars. This warmth continues into May as I write (13 May) stimulating the early emergence of the adult Marsh Fritillary butterfly.
Our management work at Lullybeg Reserve during the winter has helped shorten development times by expanding areas receiving direct sunlight and making more food and habitat available to the caterpillars and the adults. The pattern of bright sunny days and cool, even cold nights might have helped in another way.
The Marsh Fritillary caterpillar is infected by two wasps, Cotesia bignelli and Cotesia melitaearum. The latter species produces three generations, predating a single generation of caterpillars. The first generation attacks the first instar larvae in July and August, killing a percentage of these before pupating, emerging and attacking third or fourth instar caterpillars, spending winter within fourth instar larvae. These infected larvae are killed in spring and the adult wasps infect the final growth stages of the caterpillars. Losses can be so large that a population is wiped out. This removes both the butterfly and wasp from the breeding habitat.
However, in cool, sunny springs, the emergence of adult wasps from their pupae is delayed. The developing wasps cannot heat themselves within their pupae and may remain longer than usual in this state. Meanwhile, the spring larvae develop faster in cool, sunny weather and will pupate before many of the wasps have hatched. In this way, more Marsh Fritillaries survive to take flight. The wasp cannot infect eggs, pupae or adults, and they emerge out of synchronicity with their prey. This might have occurred this year.
However, some final-stage larvae were infected; this year I have observed several larvae feeding intermittently, without enthusiasm. These will not pupate. Their lives are being prolonged by their internal parasitoids which, if they pupated now, would emerge without any available larvae to attack.
Their tactic therefore is to bite their way out of the caterpillar, usually at the end of May and spin dense white silk over their pupae to deliberately prolong their pupal phase until the next generation of Marsh Fritillary caterpillars are available for them to attack in mid to late July. The cycle then begins again.
Doomed caterpillar adjoining its parasitoids spinning their silk covering.Marsh Fritillary male upperside, Lullybeg corridor, 12 May 2025.
Maintaining a large area of habitat makes extinction at the site level less likely. Maintaining connections with nearby populations means re-population can occur if a site loses its population due to conditions that favour the wasp.
These objectives are being achieved in the Lullymore and Lullybeg areas. The recording of fifty Marsh Fritillaries in Lullybeg on Monday 12 May is a fitting reward for the hard work controlling scrub and disturbing selected areas of the sward containing the foodplant to avoid Moor-grass overdominating.
The butterflies seen on 12 May, all males, were patrolling low over the area, seeking newly hatched females in need of a mate. They were occasionally inspected by Dingy Skippers, also enjoying an early, populous spring. Happy times!
An Atlas of Butterflies in Ireland 2010-2021 and the Handbook for the Irish Vegetation Classification was launched today at the Royal Irish Academy by the minister responsible for the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Christopher O’Sullivan TD, who described his ministerial brief as his ‘dream job.’ What follows is the speech made by Jesmond Harding on behalf of Butterfly Conservation Ireland.
Hello Everyone.
An Atlas of Butterflies in Ireland 2010-2021 maps the distribution of all thirty-five butterflies that occur in Ireland, comparing the pre-2010 distribution to the 2010-2021 period. It maps the distribution of each species at the 10km level and additional maps plot the distribution of three rare species at a finer resolution. The two identical-looking wood white butterflies are individually mapped, applying the results of laboratory analysis to confirm species identity.
The Atlas combines data from seven separate datasets applying different recoding methodologies that contributed 408,812 records. Accounts for our thirty-five species from 28 authors describe the appearance, habitat, ecology, distribution map and population status of each butterfly. Abundance trends are provided for the 15 commonest butterflies. Summary accounts and maps are presented for five vagrant species. The species accounts are supported by chapters on “History of Butterfly Recording in Ireland”, “Breeding Habitats for Ireland’s Butterflies”, “Background and Data Sources”, “The Changing Fortunes of Ireland’s Butterflies” and “Why are Some of Ireland’s Butterflies Declining?”.
On behalf of the three bodies that produced this Atlas, the National Biodiversity Data Centre, Butterfly Conservation Northern Ireland and Butterfly Conservation Ireland I want to express our thanks to all the butterfly recorders who have contributed butterfly records since 1900. The Atlas Steering Committee comprising Frank Smyth, Bob Aldwell, John O’Boyle, Mary Foley, Liam Lysaght and I provided key advice and guidance to develop the Atlas content and performed record verification. Tomás Murray, then Senior Ecology at the National Biodiversity Data Centre worked to recruit and train volunteers and on Atlas design. Enormous credit is due to our 28 Atlas authors and the species accounts editing team Pat Bell, Richella Duggan, Jim Fitzharris, Liam Lysaght, and I. Brian Nelson provided important advice that added significantly to text clarity and accuracy. Dave Manser of Vitamin did an excellent job designing the publication. Having been involved in the Atlas from the outset, I can confidently say that nothing Liam or I asked contributors to do was too much. A heartfelt thanks is due for everyone’s generosity.
This Atlas provides a baseline for future recording, but comparing the 2010-2021 period with the 1900-2009 period also offers a glimpse into the status of our populations in the past. In 1995 Daniel Pauly, a fisheries expert coined the term ‘shifting baseline syndrome’ to describe the acceptance of degraded natural ecosystems. Pauly knew that fisheries experts evaluated depleted fish stocks by taking as their baseline the state of fisheries at the start of their careers rather than fish populations in their natural state. In this way, each new generation redefines what is ‘natural’. What we see now or in the recent past is interpreted as the natural state of populations, prompting pre-baseline amnesia. Future generations of butterfly recorders in Ireland taking the 2010-2021 period as their baseline comparator should be less prone to pre-baseline amnesia.
However, given the limited recording carried out, especially before the mid-1990s, contemporary recorders recruited during the Atlas period might take what they see as natural. It is not. Even our commonest butterflies are suffering the assault of modernity. The figures are chilling. The Orange-tip, our loveliest spring butterfly, has declined by -68% during 2008-2021 and lost more than 10% of its distribution since the 1995-2009 period. The other common whites are showing benumbing losses: Large White – 76%, Small White – 77% and Green-veined White -87.2%. The Atlas tells us that only one species, the Holly Blue, has shown an increase in population size during 2010-2021. For the 15 commonest species, the average decline during 2010-2021 is -55.35%. The highest decline, -88% afflicts the Ringlet, a quiet inhabitant of tall, humid grassland. More alarmingly, the Hedge Brown/Gatekeeper, its deep orange uppersides glowing against the deep-green mid-summer shrubbery has lost 40% of the distribution it held before 2010, falling from an occupancy of 99 10 km squares to 59.
None of these butterflies are highly specialised species that only occupy rare habitats. The reasons for the declines are described in the Atlas. We need to be on high alert when our commonest species plunge so precipitously because it speaks to widescale environmental degradation.
The deeper solutions require societal change but at a minimum avoiding the destruction of the remaining natural vegetation on public land would help. In this regard, draining state-owned bogs to install wind turbines, Waterways Ireland rock armouring the banks of the River Barrow and removing the river’s riparian vegetation, applying herbicide in public parks to kill nettles and removing hedges and roadside trees are readily avoidable.
Beyond this, assiduous application of the EU Nature Restoration Law, protecting habitats at the landscape level, including creating a National Park on state-owned peatlands in northwest Kildare/East Offaly, will be a declaration of real intent.
The issue of chemically mediated agriculture must be addressed. Intensive farming damages our entire environment by polluting soils, water, and the atmosphere. Our butterflies are suffering from these pollution impacts. Butterflies are conspicuous and easily recordable, making them among the most reliable biological indicators we have. They indicate the quality of the soil, water, air, and vegetation.
Butterflies are the proverbial canary in the coal mine. The canary must not stop singing. If it does, we might not be around to see the results.
Thank you.
Ends
Some Key points from the Atlas
Of the resident species recorded:
16 showed no significant change in distribution.
Seven species increased in their range, with the Comma butterfly showing the largest expansion in range since it was first recorded in Wexford in 2000. It is now common in the southern part of the country. This is considered a natural expansion due to climate change. The others, from the largest expansion to the lowest, are Essex Skipper, Small Skipper, Marsh Fritillary, Holly Blue, Dingy Skipper, and Silver-washed Fritillary.
Nine decreased in range with the most dramatic being that of Wall. The Wall was recorded in 52.20% fewer 10km squares in 2010-2021 and before 2010. It has died out from large parts of the midlands (especially the north midlands) and is becoming increasingly confined to coastal habitats. It is thought that this decline is the result of dual factors associated with excess nitrogen in the environment and a changing climate.
The research shows that whilst changing environmental conditions results in more favourable habitat conditions for a small number of resident species, it primarily creates conditions that are less favourable, leading to the decline in many species of butterflies in Ireland.
The two publications are available to purchase online at the Biodiversity Ireland Shop.
Further information: https://www.npws.ie/news/minister-o%E2%80%99sullivan-launches-two-landmark-publications-support-ireland%E2%80%99s-biodiversity-and
There is a wonderfully uplifting moment in Jane Austen’s novel Emma when the title character receives an unexpected offer of marriage from the noble but restrained Mr Knightley (note the rather obvious name symbolism). The backdrop to the offer is grim. Seen through the neurosis of Emma’s perspective, Knightley appears destined to offer his love to another, and she has damaged her relationship with him and others beyond repair. As the critic Ronald Blythe points out in his introduction to the Penguin edition, the story is not about ‘the marriage of true minds’ but it explores, with the ingenuity of detective fiction, the marriage ordeal.
This ordeal and the bleak circumstances for Emma are reflected in the narrative description of the weather:
A cold stormy rain set in, and nothing of July appeared but in the trees and shrubs, which the wind was despoiling, and in the length of the day, which only made such cruel sights the longer visible. (Austen, 1815, p. 409-10)
However, the following afternoon the meteorological melancholy lifted:
In the afternoon it cleared; the wind changed into a softer quarter; the clouds were carried off; the sun appeared; it was summer again…Never had the exquisite sight, smell, sensation of nature, tranquil, warm, and brilliant after a storm, been more attractive to her. (Austen, 1815, p. 412)
This description of the changing weather forms a glorious parable behind the moment the heroine and Mr Knightley are united.
The literary device for linking the human mood with the mood of nature is frequently applied in novels, plays, poetry and film. It never gets tired because it works.
In fiction and reality, the mood is impacted by the weather. Some of this impact is severe; ‘climate anxiety’ is defined by Yale:
Climate anxiety is fundamentally distress about climate change and its impacts on the landscape and human existence. That can manifest as intrusive thoughts or feelings of distress about future disasters or the long-term future of human existence and the world, including one’s own descendants (Lowe, 2025).
Orange-tip has enjoyed more abundance so far in 2025 (up to 27 April) than in the corresponding period in the years 2021-2024. During 2008-2023, a strong decline of -65% was recorded.
Anyone who thinks this is new should look at Emma’s father’s weather phobias, and indeed the outlook of several characters that populate the novel. Winter turns them into moles, and a dusting of snow induces panic. Heat has a disorientating impact, with the July Box Hill picnic a fractious and bad-tempered outing.
However, humans have always been profoundly affected by climate and weather. In recent history in this part of the world, when poor weather damaged harvests economic loss, social and political upheaval and even mass starvation occurred. Invertebrates are no different. The months of cool, inclement weather in 2023 and 2024 severely reduced butterfly and moth abundance.
The prolonged sunny weather during March and up to April 10ththis year (2025) accelerated the development of butterfly larvae. The Marsh Fritillary caterpillars Euphydryas aurinia at Lullybeg reached the sixth (final) instar early in April and many pupated. This happened in April 2011 and the first Marsh Fritillary adults danced above the grasslands in Lullybeg on 8th May when spring dissolved into cold winds and rain. Summer never happened in 2011. The early glories of spring were pulverized by biblical rains. In July the river at Lullybeg overflowed and drowned whatever larvae were produced by the few stalwart adults that bred there. It took several years for the riverbank population to return. As though embedded in the colony’s collective memory, the habitat in that part of the reserve was shunned by future generations, until recently.
Marsh Fritillary sixth instar.
This year the weather turned wet and cool from early in the second week in April but has made a recovery effort in recent days. The default setting for Ireland’s climate is unpredictable. This year, we could see the misery of 2011’s ‘summer’ or the sublime summer of 2018. Or an absurd mixture of both. Neurosis can be provoked by our erratic climate. We never know what we face or how to act.
However, I have learned to look askance at extended lavish sunshine in spring. The meteorological auditor usually institutes a punitive balancing of the books. 2007, 2009 and 2011 provide evidence of this ‘equilibrium’. In these years, spring and summer swapped positions. On the other hand, the bleak spring of 2013, when weeks of leaden skies chilled our countryside, offered no sign of the summer. Winter over-stayed. There was no spring in 2013. Winter’s reign was directly followed by summer. And it was glorious. I recall seeing 13 pristine Wood Whites Leptidea sinapis between Murroogh and Murrooghtoohy in Northwest Clare, near Black Head, on 5th July, a perfect, happy day. This is a late date for the first generation of the Wood White which usually hatches from early May and finishes flying around mid-June. Of the three Dingy Skippers Erynnis tages I saw that day one was freshly hatched. Late to fly but making up for lost time.
Weather has a powerful influence on abundance (survival rates), emergence times, brood structure, hibernation and migration. Extreme heat during spring and summer is beneficial to most species. Extreme heat from November to February is negative for populations. Emergence times and hibernation are strongly influenced by seasonal factors such as day length but prolonged spring heat will promote earlier emergence from the pupa and will prompt earlier emergence of butterflies that over-winter as adults. We saw the first Dingy Skipper butterfly (a species that emerges from the pupa in spring) on 12th April this year. In 2024 we didn’t record this teddy bear-like butterfly flutter until 15th May, a month later. Geraldine Nee reported the first Brimstone Gonepteryx rhamni (which passes the winter in the adult state) at Derrinrush Woods, County Mayo on 23rd February, an early date for this lovely creature. In some years (2020) it takes us an additional month to see our first Brimstone.
Brimstone female, Lullybeg, Kildare.
The number of generations that multi-brooded butterflies produce is influenced by the weather over the flight season. A warm spring and summer can see the Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas produce three generations, but in Ireland, the third brood will be a partial generation with most of the second brood’s larvae overwintering. Under unfavourable conditions, a multi-brooded species might issue a cancellation order and produce just one generation. This flexibility is an excellent survival strategy. In Ireland, this has been observed, or strongly suspected, in the Small Tortoiseshell in dry summers in Howth, County Dublin. In such years, nettles are unsuitable for a second brood. Instead of breeding, the first generation hibernates until the following spring.
Clouded Yellow male, Daħlet Qorrot, Gozo.Striped Hawkmoth, Nadur, Gozo.
This April, a strong sirocco blew from Tunisia to Malta and Italy for several days. This brought many insects from North Africa, including the billowing, gaudy Plain Tiger butterfly Danaus chrysippus (nothing plain about this masterpiece). Large numbers of other migrants, notably Clouded Yellow Colias croceus, Painted Lady Vanessa cardui, Vestal Rhodometra sacraria and Striped Hawkmoth Hyles livornica also appeared, some in impressive totals. Depending on their breeding success in southern Europe and following southerly winds this summer, we might see some of their offspring later this year.
Wouldn’t that lift our mood?
Plain Tiger, female, Ramla Il-Hamra, Gozo.
Reference
Lowe, S. (2025) Yale Experts Explain Climate Anxiety. Available at: https://sustainability.yale.edu/explainers/yale-experts-explain-climate-anxiety#:~:text=LOWE%3A%20Climate%20anxiety%20is%20fundamentally,world%2C%20including%20one’s%20own%20descendants.(Accessed 27 April 2025).
March and April 2025 have brought high sunshine levels, dry weather and above-average temperatures. Not since the lockdown spring of 2020 have similar conditions occurred, and our butterflies certainly need the advantage that extreme warmth brings in spring.
The abundance analysis from 2024 has just been completed by National Biodiversity Centre’s Michelle Judge, and the data from the scheme confirms what we all felt, 2024 was a very poor year for butterflies because of the cool and overcast summer.
The key finding from the analysis is that 2024 was a bad year for butterflies, and the trend from 2008 – 20024 now shows a Strong Decline (-56.98%). Bear in mind that this figure applies to our 15 commonest butterflies only. The 10-year trend to 2024 is showing a moderate decline (-21.84% ).
While our butterflies are suffering from more than poor weather, sunny, warm weather has been demonstrated to benefit butterflies outside the November 1 to February 28 period.
Numbers of many species will be low in 2025, especially single-brooded butterflies that have suffered from the bad weather since July 2023. However, prolonged warmth will help multi-brooded species to build populations during the coming months.
Spring has long been celebrated as a time of happiness and renewal. In Home Thought from Abroad Robert Browning wrote
O, TO be in England
Now that April’s there,
And whoever wakes in England
Sees, some morning, unaware,
That the lowest boughs and the brushwood sheaf
Round the elm-tree bole are in tiny leaf,
While the chaffinch sings on the orchard bough
In England—now!
Browning mentions England rather than Ireland our experience of spring is similarly uplifting. Birdsong and unfurling leaves add the soundtrack and visual accompaniment to the season of rebirth and renewal. Flowers open their bright colours to tempt pollinators to visit. Pollinators are roused by the warmth to seek food and mates. In spring, the first butterflies to emerge are typically those that overwintered as adults, followed by butterflies tucked up in pupae. The glowing colours of butterflies did not find room in Browning’s verse, but they certainly belong there. The elation of seeing that first Orange-tip, the male’s deep, hot orange forewing tips alongside starched white elsewhere announces spring nationwide like no other butterfly.
Our experience of nature is enhanced by direct, in-the-field contact. The gallery that follows reflects that experience. Go out and enjoy spring!
Orange-tip male on Dandelion.Male Orange-tip underside.A female Comma basks on a branch. She laid a small number of eggs singly on the leaf edges of a vigorous patch of sun-warmed nettles close by.Mass flowering of Bluebells is a feature of woods in Ireland and Britain. These are blooming in Summerhill Demesne, County Meath.The glorious Emperor flies on bogs and heaths in April. She will sit in vegetation, emitting pheremones to searching males.Woodland floors and damp hedgebanks shine with golden celandines in March and April.This female Brimstone has waited seven months to fly in the spring sunshine.The Herald moth spends the winter in attics and other dry places before emerging to breed in spring.Water Avens likes damp woodland.Don’t mow: Dandelions add their sunny disposition and life-saving nectar to bees, butterflies and moths in spring.Common Dog-violet is an obscure yet striking little flower, likened by Wordsworth to his mysterious Lucy: A violet by a mossy stone Half-hidden from the Eye! —Fair, as a star when only one Is shining in the sky. The Common Dog-violet is the foodplant of the Silver-washed Fritillary caterpillar, which is busy feeding on the more delicate leaves of this plant in light-filled woods throughout Ireland.The Large White, once common, is in headlong decline. This one hatched on 11 April.We are on a promise: hundreds of Marsh Fritillary caterpillars are being reported from sites in various parts of Ireland. This one is in its sixth stage, the last before pupation. Hopes are high for a large emergence in late spring and early summer.
The best weather day in February gave a welcome morale boost to our work. The sun (we had 11 consecutive dull days in February; a dull day is defined as a day with less than half an hour’s direct sunlight) shone almost throughout our time at Lullybeg.
A view of the corridor looking east.
We devoted our attention to the well-known corridor connecting Lullymore with Lullybeg. This long, broad east-west ride is bounded on both sides by woodland. Sheltered, it contains wet, humid and dry conditions, holding wet and dry heath, wet and humid grassland and important species-rich scrub. The Molinia grassland is rich in Devil’s-bit Scabious and holds a Marsh Fritillary population.
The conservation challenge in this area is shading by encroaching scrub and tall trees especially those to the south. The Marsh Fritillary cannot tolerate shade and disappears when its habitat is not in full sun. The Brimstone also needs direct sun on its foodplants for breeding. This butterfly is spoiled for choice here, with Purging Buckthorn and Alder Buckthorn growing together. The adjoining woodland provides an over-wintering habitat for the hibernating adults.
Marsh Fritillary larvae clustered together on Moor-grass. The first date they were recorded at Lullybeg this year was 20 February.
We had two approaches to address our conservation priorities. One was to clear the grassland of scrubby birch and willow. The other was to cut overhanging trees along the edge of the ride to remove and prevent shade.
Care was taken to identify buckthorns and leave these in place. Some fine examples of the two buckthorn species were discovered deep in heavy scrub. Clearing the surrounding willow and birch means these are now available to egg-laying females and the areas of grassland that were partly shaded now receive more light. We also found violets, which are now receiving more light. These plants might now be available for use by the Silver-washed Fritillary.
Chainsaw and Marsh Fritillary: an aesthetically incongruous image but without this conservation tool the species would be lost from this corridor area.
Extensive cutting was needed and lunch provided a happy conservation-filled break. These are great opportunities for catching up with our conservation friends and the chats are my highlights. The work is tough but the results are the payback. Strolling in this area from May to September is an incredible experience. This area has the greatest dragonfly abundance I have seen anywhere and there are always butterflies here, such as Holly Blue, Green Hairstreak, Dark Green Fritillary and Comma.
Yesterday we found eight Marsh Fritillary nests after a quick look. All were basking on dry Molinia (Purple Moor-grass) in crystal late winter sunshine. Deep black, bristly caterpillars glowed in this lucidity, a hint of the purer glory of the June adults. Their presence reminds us of why we work, urging us back to the task of bringing sunshine to their habitat.
A cleared area: the shrubs that remain are buckthorns, the Brimstone’s and Holly Blue’s foodplants.
