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.
The Marsh Fritillary must have unshaded, nutrient-poor, species-rich vegetation in habitats of scale for its survival. Photo J. Harding
Under the Habitats Directive 1992 certain geological features, habitats and species must be protected within Special Areas of Conservation (SACs). One of the species is the Marsh Fritillary butterfly. Ireland had to identify areas important for the Marsh Fritillary butterfly and designate the areas as Special Areas of Conservation. This was required of European Union countries with populations of the butterfly. Where an area is designated for the butterfly, the butterfly is named as a ‘qualifying feature’ for the Special Area of Conservation. A full list of Ireland’s SACs can be found here:
Ireland listed 12 SACs with the Marsh Fritillary as a qualifying feature (in each SAC, other qualifying features are listed too). The 12 sites are listed here: https://www.npws.ie/protected-sites/search/by-feature?feature%5B%5D=6133&designation%5B%5D=375
A check of the documents available concerning each site on the National Parks & Wildlife Service website makes for interesting reading. The documents consist of
1. Conservation Objectives: these aim to define favourable conservation conditions for particular habitats or species at that site. The Conservation Objectives state whether the Marsh Fritillary is present and the area of suitable habitat within the SAC.
2. Site Synopsis: this states the site location, and summarises the habitats, species, and importance of the site and comments on any threats to the site’s conservation values.
3. Statutory Instrument (SI) and SAC maps: The SI designates the SAC, states the qualifying feature species and habitats, and sets out the activities that require ministerial consent. The maps identify the area occupied by the SAC.
What do the Conservation Objective Reports tell us?
The Marsh Fritillary was recorded in just four of the 12 SACs. These are:
1. Bricklieve Mountains and Keishcorran SAC
2. East Burren Complex SAC
3. Moneen Mountain SAC
4. West of Ardara/Maas Road SAC
My records indicate it is extinct in Ballynafagh (last recorded 1999) and Killarney (last recorded 2006), the report for Barrigone states that there are no confirmed records for that site. Remarkably, the Barrigone report states:
The association of the species with the SAC derives from a paper by Lavery (1993) which refers to a site called Foynes/Barrigone as being one of three major populations in Ireland. A survey in 2012 did not find the species in the SAC (Wilson et al., 2013).
Was Lavery correct when he wrote the paper? Was Lavery’s word taken without an NPWS site survey? Why is the area designated to protect a butterfly that does not occur there?
The area occupied by the Marsh Fritillary at Barrigone has dried out and is now overgrown with scrub. Geoffrey Hunt, a reliable recorder searched the area regularly since 1998 and has not seen any Marsh Fritillary on the site. Geoffrey’s knowledge of the site raises questions concerning this statement from the site’s Conservation Objectives report:
In 2012, just over 9ha of habitat was assessed as suitable for the species (NPWS, 2019).
Is there any suitable habitat remaining at Barrigone?
The presence of the Marsh Fritillary’s foodplant, Devil’s-bit Scabious, is the essential ingredient in the butterfly’s habitat. The foodplant density should ideally be at least 25% in vegetation 10-25cm high, containing dry material and an undulating structure. Photo J. Harding.
The Conservation Objective reports for the following four sites where the Marsh Fritillary is a qualifying feature for the SAC do not even mention the butterfly:
1. Bunduff Lough and Machair/Trawalua/Mullaghmore
2. Gweedore Bay and Islands SAC
3. Sheephaven SAC
4. St. John’s Point SAC.
I have visited Bunduff Lough and Machair/Trawalua/Mullaghmore SAC (the terrestrial area is 1,812.12ha) and St. John’s Point SAC (the terrestrial area is 152.08ha) and found larval webs on these sites. However, while I did not measure the area of suitable habitat present on these sites, the areas are not extensive.
I calculated the combined area of the SACs (excluding maritime areas for coastal sites) and, where the figure was provided, the area of suitable habitat for the butterfly. In two SACs, located in the Burren, the area of suitable habitat was estimated by NPWS, not measured. Combined, the 12 SACs contain 159,647.26 hectares. The total suitable habitat stated is 5,725.2 hectares.
The ratio of suitable habitat in hectares to overall terrestrial area in these SACs is 1:28. There is one hectare of suitable habitat for the Marsh Fritillary for every 28 hectares of land. The ratio of Marsh Fritillary habitat to total SAC land of 1:28 is problematic.
As the Marsh Fritillary occupies the landscape in a metapopulation structure there is a need for a network of sites within a region for the species’ long-term survival. In England, the minimum figure of 50ha (note: 50ha2 is ½ km2) of suitable habitat within an area of 16km2 (1600ha) is indicated by Bulman et al. (2007). (This ratio is 1ha:32ha.) The modelling suggests the species may persist in areas below this area for decades, but extinction will eventually result unless additional habitat is provided. Irish research is needed concerning this aspect (NPWS, 2019).
If the ecology and habitat distribution of the Marsh Fritillary reflect that in England, the combined figures for the 12 SACs designated to protect the species are below the minimum threshold needed for long-term survival.
Taken on a regional basis, only the two Burren SACs, which are extensive (but much smaller than the Connemara and Killarney SACs), contain habitat that exceeds the minimum required. The Burren SACs and the habitat and habitat ratios are:
East Burren Complex (18800.65 ha (188 km2 ): 3,200ha (32km2), ratio 1:6 and Moneen Mountain (6100ha (61 km2): 2,500ha (25 km2), ratio is 1:2.4.
Landscapes must be protected for nature. Small areas are of little value against biodiversity loss and climate change. Photo J. Harding
A proper analysis of the minimum figure for regions holding the smaller SACs would need to factor in any suitable habitat in areas adjoining the SAC to assess the species on a regional basis. However, adjoining areas might not hold breeding habitat.
The absence of detailed management plans for some SACs is another problem. How do we know if the habitat is being managed correctly? The Burren’s populations are safe, for now.
This cannot be said of many populations elsewhere. Look at Barrigone, once regarded as one of the three major populations In Ireland. Look at Killarney and Ballynafagh, where it no longer occurs. These are sites where the preservation of the Marsh Fritillary is a conservation priority. Protecting the butterfly, which means protecting its habitat, preserves many important habitats and species. The absence of the butterfly highlights poor habitat quality, bad practice and lack of care. The summative assessment is ‘poor result is due to the lack of any serious effort.’
The formative assessment is to ‘apply the required habitat management techniques to restore the habitat within SACs and expand the network of protected areas and appropriately manage these areas to at least meet the minimum habitat size of 50ha within 16km2 to ensure this lovely butterfly’s long-term survival.’
There are two areas set aside for nature where the land is managed specifically for the Marsh Fritillary. These are Butterfly Conservation Ireland’s Crabtree Reserve, Lullybeg, Kildare and the Irish Peatland Conservation Council’s Lullymore West Butterfly Reserve. Both sites hold long-term, thriving populations. It can be done.
Killeglan grasslands, near Athlone, hold a strong Marsh Fritillary population. This is one of Ireland’s best butterfly sites. Photo J. Harding
References
Bulman, C.R., Wilson, R.J., Holt, A., Galvez Bravo, L., Early, R., Warren, M.& Thomas, C.D. (2007) Minimum viable metapopulation size, extinction debt, and the conservation of a declining species. Ecological Applications 17: 1460–1473.
NPWS (2019). The Status of EU Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland. Volume 3: Species Assessments. Unpublished NPWS report. Edited by: Deirdre Lynn and Fionnuala O’Neill
NPWS (2021) Conservation Objectives: Ballynafagh Lake SAC 001387. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
NPWS (2019) Conservation Objectives: Barrigone SAC 000432. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2021) Conservation Objectives: Bricklieve Mountains and Keishcorran SAC 001656. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
NPWS (2015) Conservation Objectives: Bunduff Lough and Machair/Trawalua/Mullaghmore SAC 000625. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2015) Conservation Objectives: Connemara Bog Complex SAC 002034. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2022) Conservation Objectives: East Burren Complex SAC 001926. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
NPWS (2015) Conservation Objectives: Gweedore Bay and Islands SAC 001141. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2021) Conservation Objectives: Moneen Mountain SAC 000054. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
NPWS (2017) Conservation Objectives: Killarney National Park, Macgillycuddy’s Reeks and Caragh River Catchment SAC 000365. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2014) Conservation Objectives: Sheephaven SAC 001190. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2015) Conservation Objectives: St. John’s Point SAC 000191. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
NPWS (2015) Conservation Objectives: West of Ardara/Maas Road SAC 000197. Version 1. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
Butterfly Conservation Ireland Annual Report 2024 is now available. You can find it under the Report tab: https://butterflyconservation.ie/wp/butterfly-conservation-ireland-annual-report-2024/
We hope you enjoy the content. A hard copy is available free to all members of Butterfly Conservation Ireland.
Glorious Begum Agatasa calydonia. The Butterflies of Thailand are featured in this year’s publication thanks to a special report from Michael Friel. Photo Michael Friel.
On 1st November 2024, the Irish Government published its response to the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss. This was done just before the General Election was called. The statement concerning the report can be found here:
The government states that the National Biodiversity Action Plan was assessed by the Worldwide Fund for Nature and “was found to be the best in Europe and one of the best in the world.”
These are the Government’s claims. Do these withstand scrutiny?
What does the Worldwide Fund for Nature say about Ireland’s National Biodiversity Action Plan?
First, a definition: the Worldwide Fund for Nature references the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) when assessing National Biodiversity Action Plans.
In 2022, 196 countries agreed to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. This is a historic deal for nature and a breakthrough for conserving and restoring biodiversity and ensuring its sustainable use. The GBF contains four goals and 23 targets. One goal is to
Substantially increase the area of natural ecosystems by maintaining, enhancing or restoring the integrity, connectivity and resilience of all ecosystems. Reduce by tenfold the extinction rate and risk of all species and increase the abundance of native wild species. Maintain the genetic diversity of wild and domesticated species and safeguard their adaptive potential.
The Worldwide Fund for Nature is highly complimentary about Ireland’s 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBSAP). It notes that the Plan addresses all the targets of the GBF. These can be read in Appendix I of the Plan. Targets, clear actions and success indicators are stated.
However, the Fund notes problems too. Areas lacking include no specific plans within the NBSAP to reduce the footprint of consumption within Ireland other than what is already in place (GBF Target 16); plans to address harmful incentives (GBF Target 18) do not go further than committing to implement a financial tracking system. Overall, financing commitments and actions are weak. GBF Target 18 calls for the Governments to
eliminate, phase out or reform incentives: incentives, including subsidies, harmful for biodiversity, in a proportionate, just, fair, effective and equitable way by 2030, starting with the most harmful incentives, and scale up positive incentives for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
In the matter of financing the 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBSAP), the Worldwide Fund for Nature states:
In terms of financing, 3 billion euros have been allocated in Ireland’s 2024 Budget to an Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund which may include support for the delivery of the NBSAP but it is unclear how much will be dedicated to the NBSAP or to which action plans. The process to develop a National Biodiversity Finance Plan dedicated to NBSAP execution is underway which may yield more resources.
The 4th National Biodiversity Action Plan is in place, but will it be implemented? And how well will it work?
Since this Government took office in 2020, some positive initiatives have been implemented. The state has ceased destroying peat bogs in its ownership and has re-wet a minority of the peatlands held by Bord na Móna. Coillte (state forestry service) is also restoring some peatland. However, a negative lies in the failure to implement Recommendation 117 of the Citizen’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss which provides:
All enterprise involved in the harnessing of renewable energy from or on all peatland must have a strict biodiversity net gain clause attached to their development permission and must be responsible for the ongoing and future management and enhancement of the biodiversity of their sites.
The result is likely to be the destruction of habitats and ongoing biodiversity loss from these peatland sites. The document provides no reason for this decision. Recommendation 50 of the Citizen’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss is to
stop the use of harmful chemicals and pesticides. This would include: – Preventing people from spraying plants with pesticides and chemicals, and making sure farmers do not spread chemicals on the roads
This recommendation is not being implemented.
Of the 159 Recommendations of the Citizens Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, 134 (84.3%) are considered by the Government to be in progress, 15 (9.4%) are being implemented and 10 (6.3%) are not being implemented.
A huge amount of work has not been completed. Some of the targets in the National Biodiversity Action Plan, such as the notification of Annex habitats and species listed on the EU Habitats and Birds Directives and the development of management plans for Special Areas of Conservation should have been completed decades ago. The National Peatland Strategy 2015-2025 has missed important deadlines for the completion of actions. It is doubtful that some of these will be completed. Ireland remains without a national park holding a single raised bog, a priority habitat.
A complete review of the Government’s claims and progress is impossible here, but let’s look at some problems.
The Eurasian Curlew might cease breeding in Ireland. Its farmland and bogland breeding areas have mostly been destroyed. The Lapwing is in deep trouble for similar reasons.
No more raised bog…no more Curlews, Skylarks, Meadow Pippits and Large Heath butterflies. Photo J. Harding
The 2024 Irish Butterfly Monitoring Scheme report (which covers the 2023 flight season) contains stark news.
No resident butterfly species showed an increase in population size compared to 2008. During 2008-2023, four of our butterflies experienced a ‘strong decline’ and eight experienced a ‘moderate decline’. Two are regarded as stable while seven are rated ‘uncertain.’ Just one butterfly, the migrant Red Admiral, showed an increase. (Source: Judge, M and Lysaght, L. (2024). The Irish Butterfly Monitoring Scheme Newsletter, Issue 16. National Biodiversity Data Centre).
Next year’s report will show even bigger declines, owing to the poor summer weather in 2023 and 2024, ongoing challenges of shrinking habitat, pollution and climate change. If we were to judge the Government’s success in dealing with biodiversity based on the population levels of our butterflies, we would deliver a failure verdict.
This delicate little white butterfly is unspotted separating it from all other white butterflies found in Ireland. The wood white exists in Ireland as two identical-looking species: the Wood White found in open scrub growing on exposed carboniferous limestone in Clare, Galway and Mayo and the Cryptic Wood White which breeds on more open grassy sites with scattered scrub outside the areas occupied by its sister species. The wood whites are not separated in the monitoring counts, but given the Cryptic Wood White is much more widespread, it is likely the species that has suffered the highest losses. Photo J. Harding
Between 2008 and 2023, a population decline of 60% was recorded for the Common Blue, Wood White agg. and Speckled Wood. The Green-veined White, probably our most widespread species, fell by 82%.
You might ask the politicians and canvassers why so many of our landscapes cannot support abundant populations of once-common butterflies, birds, flowers and bees. Ask why Ireland insists on destroying biodiversity by clinging to its derogation from the Nitrates Directive and continues to use poisons and pollutants to grow food.
How many Small Tortoiseshell butterflies did you see in 2024? If common butterflies with no special requirements no longer thrive, the Government cannot claim success in protecting nature.
The Small Tortoiseshell collapsed in 2024, plummeting to lows not seen in my lifetime. Photo J. Harding
There is a track in Lullymore in northwest Kildare that runs in an east-west direction, about half of its length is open to the south while native woodland exists on its northern edge. The track was created by excavating marl and rises above the adjoining peat soils. The track holds a range of grasses, including Red Fescue, Cock’s-foot Grass, Sweet Vernal Grass, and Quaking Grass. Herbs include Common Knapweed, Rough Hawkbit, Common Dandelion, Common Bird’s-foot-trefoil, eye-bright, Common Dog-violet, Meadow Vetchling, and Devil’s-bit Scabious. Common Nettle occurs in different areas on both sides of the track. There are some areas of bare soil on the track created by vehicles.
The adjoining wood contains Bilberry, Bramble, Downy Birch, Grey Willow and Common Holly, with small amounts of Common Hawthorn. Broom and Bracken are present with the latter abundant in the shaded area on the southern edge of the track. Alder Buckthorn occurs near the southern edge of the track, on peat soil. The track leads to the Irish Peatland Conservation Council’s butterfly reserve.
The track is very popular with nature lovers. In spring and summer, many happy hours are spent in this space by nature lovers who can observe the large populations of insects that congregate here. From Hairy Dragonflies in May to Black Darters and Migrant Hawkers in late October, the track is a dragonfly haven throughout these months. And little wonder, given the large prey populations, warmth and perch points available.
Several butterflies visit the track and several breed on it. Dingy Skipper, Cryptic Wood White, Common Blue, Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Comma, Speckled Wood, Meadow Brown and Ringlet breed on the site, while Wall Brown, a suspected breeder, is sadly now rare.
The photograph of this lovely Peacock was taken on the track in August this year. Photo J. Harding.
Brimstone, Small White, Green-veined White, Orange-tip, Silver-washed Fritillary and Marsh Fritillary visit for food and mates. The sheltered site encourages butterflies from adjoining areas to congregate here during windy conditions. This makes the track a place of abundance and a pleasant place for people to watch nature.
However, over recent years the experience has become less than it used to be. Shade cast by overhanging branches from the wood and the scrub on the track’s southern edge and the denser, more shade-tolerant grasses are lessening the floral resources and darkening and cooling the track.
Butterfly Conservation Ireland’s work party have begun to reverse these changes on our workday on Saturday 9th November. Shading scrub and the shadow-casting overhanging branches were tackled and bramble, which favours semi-shade and has been swallowing up the herbs, was dealt with by our brush-cutter. Tough and inglorious the work might be, but the results are glorious. As usual, our tea and lunch breaks are not just welcome sustenance but great catch-up times, and happy times for sharing news and experiences. Sharing experiences with nature are great enhancement to appreciation.
We offer our heartfelt thanks to all our conservation workers for all the effort devoted to nature. We will have our next work party early in 2025.
Part of Lullymore track in summer 2017: sow thistle and Meadowsweet can be seen on the right adjoining the native woodland. Photo J. Harding
We are baked into a biodiversity catastrophe. Observers who have lived over 40 years and those with access to long-term data might grasp how bad the natural world’s crisis has become. In Ireland, we moved from holding massive areas of intact wetlands containing large populations of breeding wading birds, to ugly, brown peat deserts many now with towering wind turbines, from vast flower-rich grasslands with their Skylarks, Meadow Pipits, Curlews and Corncrakes to empty factory floor astro-turf-coloured rye-grass monocultures maintained by climate-warming chemical inputs.
Cutting of peat at a Bord na Móna bog. J. Harding
The baselines plummet ever downwards. And how do we react? Mostly not at all or with minimal tokenism. A little scheme here and there. Or worse. Kildare farmer Dermot Doran puts a pond in his farm that draws Kingfishers, Herons, Moorhens and Egrets. He did it because he loves nature. He spends €6000 in the process. Then his farm payment is cut. He is punished for doing the right thing—dumb and Dumber.
Bad practice abounds. Hedgerows are one of our crucial habitats. In a country with few native woods, our hedgerows assume great significance for nature. Most of our butterflies and large numbers of our moths breed in hedges or on the extended field margins and hedge banks. Bats and birds use hedges as their feeding zones and travel routes. Hedgehogs, frogs, Foxes and Badgers feed, rest, breed and hide in them. A species-rich hedge and adjoining grassland is a treasure. These habitats are biodiversity hotspots, give shelter and warmth, mark boundaries, retain livestock and add character to our countryside. Yet look at the miserable example below. Many are badly managed; cut severely like the one in the photograph or left unmanaged so they develop gaps.
Severe cutting reduces a hedge’s value for nature. The intensive farming practice extends to the field which is doused in chemical fertilisers and slurry every year. Photo J. Harding
Even nastier is the practice of removing sections of rural hedging to erect post and rail fencing usually followed by ‘garden shrubs’ like Escallonia (South America), Griselinia (New Zealand), Leylandii (derived from two species of cypress from North America ), Cherry Laurel (native to south-east Europe towards Iran) or some other bland blight on the landscape. These plants are not native support only a few native insects and don’t provide nectar, pollen and fruit like Common Hawthorn, Dog Rose, Field Rose, Honeysuckle, Blackthorn, Guelder Rose, and Bramble do.
Crass, unvarying and lifeless: laurel hedging in the Irish countryside. Photo J. Harding
A little less nasty is Common Beech. Beech isn’t native either and beech-only hedges look wrong in our countryside. The non-native hedging plants are typically the rubrics of suburbia now appearing in rural areas courtesy of one-off houses. They remove native species hedgerows and replace them with ‘plastic.’ These plants could be plastic as far as their value for biodiversity extends. No native butterfly breeds on any of these non-native plants.
Leylandii is fast-growing but hard to manage and poor for wildlife. Photo J. Harding
Not happy with shiny laurel and Griselinia, many add sycamores, Himalayan Birch and ornamental conifers. A tree is a tree, right? We need more trees, don’t we? We need more of the right trees. Grow, according to the trees naturally present in your area, Mountain Ash, Irish Whitebeam, Common Whitebeam, Bird Cherry, Wild Cherry, Alder Buckthorn, Purging Buckthorn, Common Hawthorn, Grey Willow, Downy Birch, Common Hazel, Sessile Oak, Pedunculate Oak.
Native hedgerow with extended margin rich in native flora. Photo J. Harding.
According to UK research, 1,178 invertebrate species use our native oaks (Sessile Oak, Pedunculate Oak) and 257 of them rely solely on these trees.[1] This does not include birds, bats, lichens, fungi and mosses using our native oaks. Taking every dependent and associated species, oaks support 2,300 species excluding bacteria and other microorganisms. [2]
Ecology of the oak tree: information board at Kilkenny Castle. Photo J. Harding.
To offer a little Lepidoptera context, only two of our large moth species use non-native Sycamore (the Small Yellow Wave and the Buff-tip, which also uses native trees). However, 71 of Ireland’s larger moths use oak.
It is simply a magical tree, long-lived, steeped in our culture, and needed by nature more than ever.
Another crime against nature is our addiction to chemical weapons. We poison wildlife. At the Orchard Garden Centre in Celbridge, I found shelves full of chemicals to kill wildlife. One of the products, Weedfree Plus promises to kill Dandelion, clover, speedwell, buttercups, and Creeping Thistle, among others. Dandelion, Red Clover and White Clover, Creeping and Field Buttercup and Creeping Thistle are among the best native flora for pollinators. The public is encouraged to let these flowers flourish by pollinator schemes while garden centres encourage us to poison them. Charming.
Mortal combat: the vocabulary of care applied to chemical poisoning is darkly ironic. Photo J. Harding
The safety instructions on Weedfree Plus advise users to ‘Avoid all unnecessary contact with this product’. Excellent advice.
There is an obsession with slug and snail killers. What are Song Thrushes, frogs and Hedgehogs supposed to eat?
Elsewhere in the garden centre, there is a range of bird food products ranging from dried mealworm to seed and nuts, fat balls, and bird feeders supported by a video on repeat showing Goldfinches frenzying over a feeder.
If we grow native flora in our gardens, we would not need supplemental feeding for birds. Dandelion and Creeping Thistle provide lots of natural food for Goldfinches.
One plant in the garden centre caught my eye; Cephalanthus occidentalis marketed as Cephalanthus Magical Moonlight and described as a ‘Butterfly Magnet’. The species is native to North America. It attracts butterflies there and is likely to attract Irish butterflies. Native herbs are targeted for eradication while non-natives sell for €19.95.
We need native plants to feed species native to our ecosystems. The best native shrub for feeding adult pollinators is probably Bramble. Nineteen of our larger moths’ larvae feed on the leaves. The fruit is eaten by birds and by several butterflies and moths, including the Small Copper and Speckled Wood butterflies.
A male Comma feeding on a blackberry, Mulhussey, Co. Meath.
We have destroyed most of our wetlands and farmland. We need to repair the damage, late as it is, but the right approach must be implemented across all habitats.
The home and garden are good places to begin.
Goldfinches don’t need supplemental feeding if you grow Devil’s-bit Scabious (seen here) and Common Knapweed. Photo J. Harding.
A beautiful male Brimstone feeding on Common Knapweed. Wills Cigarettes featured the Brimstone on its cigarette cards in 1927, ironic in the context of the product promoted. Photo J. Harding
Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? “Consider how the wildflowers grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
(Luke 12:22–31)
During a sermon based on this reading last Sunday, the minister referenced butterflies. Immediately I focussed on the sermon. Striving for material success, wealth and fame was likened to butterfly hunting. Butterfly hunting was referenced as a shallow, empty, purposeless activity. I bristled. My fellow congregants know my propinquity to the world of butterflies.
This is the first time I heard of butterflies signifying vacuity although The Bible mentions moths as a corrupting force, symbolising the futility of a life lived for gain:
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
(Matthew 6:19-21)
This stimulated me to ponder the metaphorical references to butterflies. How do we view butterflies?
Are they just the objects of admiration for the shallow, or do they reflect the positive values of those who love them and the butterflies themselves?
The ITV dramatization of P.G. Wodehouse’s Cheeves and Wooster novels contains this exchange:
Roderick Spode: Because he’s a butterfly, who toys with women’s hearts and throws them aside like soiled gloves!
Bertie Wooster: Do butterflies do that?
In this exchange, butterflies are shallowly attractive, meretriciously compelling but ultimately deceitful. Nothing of integrity lies beneath the beguiling beauty of a butterfly. So far we have butterflies aligned with emptiness, greed, materialism and dishonesty. Not a pretty picture, despite their beauty.
Nothing so sweet can be wholesome. Yet butterflies have been deployed as symbols of spiritual living. In Maria van Oosterwijck’s Vanitas Still Life (1668) a Red Admiral is perched on a page accompanied by objects that appear to have little connection. Beneath the somewhat faded butterfly is a piece of paper with a handwritten quote from the Old Testament’s Book of Job: “Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble” – a passage that goes on to say, “He springs up like a flower and withers away; like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure.” It sounds bleak, but it is intended to liberate us from our addiction to luxuries. All the objects in the image show the passing of time (such as the timer and skull) and the ultimate futility of worldly possessions. The Red Admiral reinforces the theme; it will not live long, and its colours are already fading. The painting is a warning.
A pristine Red Admiral, unlike the individual in Maria van Oosterwijck’s painting. Photo J. Harding.
Some species carry particular significance. The Celts saw white butterflies as the souls of dead people. In Scotland, the small tortoiseshell was known as the witch’s butterfly. I don’t know why they thought negatively about a butterfly loved elsewhere.
The complexity of the symbolic associations created around butterflies is interesting in that it shows our suspicion of beauty. Beauty cannot be trusted. It often conceals ugly realities. In the poem Butterflies Rosita Boland writes about landmines in Bosnia “Decorated with butterflies”. Children who touch them become “winged in the act/Gaudy and ephemeral.”
The sinister practice of targeting innocence is powerfully underscored using the butterfly metaphor. Reaching out for the butterflies, the children become butterflies. The terror is stark, especially with the use of beautiful imagery to convey ugly reality.
Other references are more positive. In his remarkable portrait of trench warfare on the western front (1914-1918) Erich Remarque writes about beautiful Brimstone butterflies fluttering around a muddy trench, a sight that lifts the soul of the soldiers after the horrors of the most recent battle. Interestingly, there are no trees or shrubs nearby. The Brimstone habitat has been destroyed by artillery fire.
While the conflict raged, British troops saw butterflies they knew from home only as extreme rarities, like the Camberwell Beauty and Common Swallowtail. These gave joy amid the horror, a juxtaposition that hopefully offered some relief.
Dipping into the ancient world of Greece, one wonders why a society stocked with great thinkers and writers is almost devoid of even passing references to butterflies. Homer (date of life unknown), Hesiod (c. 750-650 BC) and Plato (428/427-348 BC) have no recorded mention of butterflies although Aristotle does; in 340 BC, he described the metamorphosis of the butterfly from caterpillar to adult butterfly. This silence is at odds with the ancient Greek curiosity and interest in the world in general. Peter Marren (2019) wonders if the Greeks saw the butterfly as trivia. Important things were the subjects of literature. Butterflies didn’t matter. They are beautiful but essentially useless. I have often been asked, “What do they do?” Implicit is the idea that they do nothing and or they mean nothing unless they do something for humans. Geoffrey Chaucer is blunt in his view of their uselessness.
In The Canterbury’s Tales, the host asks the monk to tell another tale:
Sir Monk, no more of this, so God you bless!
Your tale annoys the entire company;
Such talking is not worth a butterfly;
For in it is no sport nor any game.
(The Canterbury’s Tales: The Nun’s Priest’s Prologue lines 14-39: The Host asks the Monk to tell another tale )
Shakespeare is not complimentary either. In King Lear, after Cordelia’s forces are defeated and she and her father King Lear are imprisoned, Lear comforts her:
Lear: No, no, no, no! Come, let’s away to prison: We two alone will sing like birds i’ the cage: When thou dost ask me blessing, I’ll kneel down, And ask of thee forgiveness: so we’ll live, And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues Talk of court news;
(King Lear Act 5, Sc 3, 1-4)
Butterflies are fake; the characters Lear alludes to are the hypocrites in the royal court.
A Brown Hairstreak. This butterfly is quite tame and will happily sit on your hand in cool weather. Photo J. Harding
William Wordsworth (1770-1850) was far more positive. He sees the butterfly as a reminder of his younger self and “My father’s family”:
Stay near me – do not take thy flight!
A little longer stay in sight!
Much converse do I find in thee,
Historian of my infancy!
Float near me; do not yet depart!
Dead times revive in thee:
(To a Butterfly lines 1-7)
The second verse is a dip into the past when he and his sister “Emmeline and ITogether chased the butterfly!” He hunted the butterfly with vigour and Emmeline, his gentle sister, was careful not to damage its delicate wings. Wordsworth does not evoke any larger interpretive vision of butterflies. They matter to him because they stir memories of his past.
It is interesting to note that Wordsworth lived in England when butterflies were regarded as wonderful, objects of desire and as species worthy of serious study. Attitudes were changing. People invested their time and money in acquiring specimens and breeding and studying butterflies.
Today butterflies hold a firm position as representing the condition of the natural world. We know they are important indicators of the health of our broader environment. They are less often viewed simply as beautiful but essentially useless; our knowledge of ecology and the key role butterflies play in ecosystems means they are taken seriously. They show the effects of climate change, land use change, the use of chemicals in farming and atmospheric pollution. They indicate when our environment is improving or degrading. In essence, they teach us about ourselves, just as Wordsworth described in 1807.
As a species with a large brain and extraordinary imagination, we often believe we can do anything. We landed on the moon, explored Mars, developed answers to diseases that have killed people for thousands of years, and increased human lifespans at an extraordinary rate. In 1900, the average life expectancy in the UK was 48. Today it is 81.92 years. My great-grandfather died at age 31. I can expect to live 51 years longer. We produce enough food to feed 10 billion people. We can, it appears, achieve anything.
Man can be forgiven for hubris. The record of achievement is phenomenal. There is nothing bigger than us. All other life forms appear to be under our control. We are masters of our planet.
But planet Earth is a complex place with systems we interfere with at our peril. A key system that regulates our climate and distributes nutrients is the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC).
The AMOC circulates water from north to south and back in a long cycle within the Atlantic Ocean. This circulation brings warmth to various parts of the globe and carries nutrients necessary to sustain ocean life.
The circulation process begins as warm water near the surface moves toward the poles (such as the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic), where it cools and forms sea ice. As this ice forms, salt is left behind in the ocean water. Due to the large amount of salt in the water, it becomes denser, sinks, and is carried southwards in the depths below. Eventually, the water gets pulled back up towards the surface and warms up in a process called upwelling, completing the cycle.
The entire circulation cycle of the AMOC, and the global conveyor belt, is quite slow. It takes an estimated 1,000 years for a parcel (any given cubic meter) of water to complete its journey along the belt.
This system was turned off during the last Ice Age. Now there is evidence that pre-history may be repeating itself.
Susanne Ditlevsen and her brother Peter Ditlevsen, issued a stark warning in their 2023 paper, “Warning of a forthcoming collapse of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation”. Their paper predicts a tipping point, to occur in 2057.
The AMOC has only been monitored continuously since 2004 through combined measurements from moored instruments, induced electrical currents in submarine cables and satellite surface measurements. Over the period 2004–2012, a decline in the AMOC has been observed.
The threat to AMOC is climate warming. The rising temperatures are causing ice in the North Atlantic region to melt, adding fresh water to the North Atlantic. This decreases the salt content as the current reaches the North Atlantic. This makes the water less dense. This means the water will eventually not be pushed down (overturning circulation) to the seabed to begin its southward journey, as happens now. This means the water will not be rewarmed and will not return to the North Atlantic, to bring mild air to Northern Europe, including Ireland.
The Ditlevsens estimate an inaccurate confidence in the stability of AMOC. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), based on the Climate Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP) model simulations suggest that a full collapse is unlikely within the 21st century. The UK Met Office agrees with the IPCC that a collapse before 2100 is unlikely. But as our future descendants would say, “That’s no good to us.”
Based on the data used by the Ditlevesens, the tipping point is nigh. 2057 is 33 years hence. While many climate scientists disagree with the Ditlevsens, nobody has been able to prove them wrong.
What are the impacts of a major slowdown in AMOC?
According to the UK Met Office, the impacts of an AMOC collapse are as follows.
An AMOC shutdown would cause cooling of the northern hemisphere, sea level rise in the Atlantic, an overall decrease in precipitation over Europe and North America, and a southwards shift in monsoons in South America and Africa. These impacts are robust and seen in many models, but their magnitude remains uncertain. Atmospheric circulation over Europe may also change, possibly causing more winter storms in Northern Europe and increasing summer rain around the Mediterranean. Impacts outside of the Atlantic region are less certain, but could affect Asian monsoons and El Nino. (Met Office, 2019)
René M. van Westen, Michael Klipphuis and Henk A. Dijkstra in their paper Physics-based early warning signal shows that AMOC is on tipping course, published in February this year (2024) gives a very stark picture of what a collapse in AMOC will bring.
The AMOC collapse dramatically changes the redistribution of heat (and salt) and results in a cooling of the Northern Hemisphere, while the Southern Hemisphere slightly warms. Atmospheric and sea-ice feedbacks, which were not considered in idealized climate models studies, further amplify the AMOC-induced changes, resulting in a very strong and rapid cooling of the European climate with temperature trends of more than 3°C per decade. In comparison with the present-day global mean surface temperature trend (due to climate change) of about 0.2°C per decade, no realistic adaptation measures can deal with such rapid temperature changes under an AMOC collapse. (Westen et al., 2024)
An Irish snowscape, County Meath, 3rd March, 2018. Photo J. Harding
They also mapped the consequences of a collapse. Sea levels in the Atlantic would rise by a metre in some regions, inundating many coastal cities. Wet and dry seasons in the Amazon would flip, potentially pushing the already weakened rainforest past its own tipping point.
Temperatures around the world would fluctuate far more erratically. The southern hemisphere would become warmer. Europe would cool dramatically and have less rainfall. While this might sound appealing compared with the current heating trend, the changes would hit 10 times faster than now, making adaptation almost impossible.
“What surprised us was the rate at which tipping occurs,” said Dr René van Westen of Utrecht University. “It will be devastating.”
There was not yet enough data to say whether this would occur in the next year or in the coming century, but when it happens, the changes are irreversible on human timescales. “We are moving towards [collapse]. That is kind of scary,” Dr van Westen said. “We need to take climate change much more seriously.”
Declines of the magnitude of 3°C per decade point to catastrophe. Our ecosystems, already assaulted by habitat and species loss, and pollution would be altered or destroyed. We will cease to be a major producer of food. Areas of the country might be below water. The world we know now will change utterly. Is it a question of if, or when?
References
Ditlevsen, P. & Ditlevsen, S. 2023, “Warning of a forthcoming collapse of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation”, Nature communications, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 4254-4254.
van Westen, R.M., Kliphuis, M. & Dijkstra, H.A. 2024, “Physics-based early warning signal shows that AMOC is on tipping course”, Science advances, vol. 10, no. 6, pp. eadk1189.
Met Office 2019. Risk Management of climate thresholds and feedbacks: Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation Available at https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/oceans/amoc (Accessed 15 September 2024)
O’Sullivan, K. (2024) Collapse of Atlantic ocean current could turn Ireland’s climate into Iceland’s The Irish Times 16 February Available at https://www.irishtimes.com/environment/climate-crisis/2024/02/16/ireland-must-prepare-for-atlantic-meridional-overturning-circulation-collapse-ff-senator-warns/
The latest Irish Butterfly Monitoring Scheme report 2023 (Judge and Lysaght 2023) mentions the six most common butterflies recorded using butterfly transect recording.
1. Meadow Brown 7716
2. Speckled Wood 5678
3. Ringlet 3849
4. Small Tortoiseshell 3582
5. Peacock 2997
6. Green-veined White 2488
While 2023 lacked warm, dry summer weather after the end of June, populations of some species proved quite high. I was thrilled to see a great recovery in Peacock numbers, for example, which were much lower in 2022. The Small Tortoiseshell also featured in thrilling numbers during 2023 in the places I look for butterflies, chiefly south Meath and north-west Kildare.
A female Meadow Brown, Lullybeg Reserve.
The figures given above are taken from transects, not from casual recording. Transects are fixed route walks when counts are made each week from 1 April to 30 September or are made five times during this period.
Casual butterfly recording is recording butterflies seen in a location but without necessarily visiting that location regularly and probably not applying a standardised counting methodology. This does not mean that casual recording is not valuable. Casual recording is vital to obtain distributional data meaning it allows us to know where in a country butterflies occur. Furthermore, many casual recorders report their sightings from an area they visit regularly, so results can be broadly similar to those obtained when walking the fixed route used in a transect.
The records on the Butterfly Conservation Ireland record database are a mixture of transect records, records from regularly visited locations and records arising from one-off site visits.
As an imperfect, interim comparison exercise, we compiled the records Butterfly Conservation Ireland received of these six most common species from the beginning of 2024 to the end of August 2024 and ranked them numerically.
Here is what we found.
1. Meadow Brown 2225
2. Ringlet 1632
3. Speckled Wood 642
4. Green-veined White 526
5. Peacock 245
6. Small Tortoiseshell 188
While the Meadow Brown held the top spot, the other five species changed their placings. The crashes in the Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell populations are particularly striking.
Small Tortoiseshells are not benefitting from climate change despite being a nettle feeder, like the Comma.
The number of Small Tortoiseshell recorded in July 2023 (351) and for the Peacock in August 2023 (881) heavily underline this collapse. August 2023 saw more 72% more Peacock records than the first eight months of 2024. For the Small Tortoiseshell that figure is 46%. A comparison for both species using the full years will show even steeper drops.
We hope to bring you that analysis in our Annual Report 2024. For the Annual Report 2023, see https://butterflyconservation.ie/wp/butterfly-conservation-ireland-annual-report-2023/
The Peacock butterfly was especially numerous during August 2023.
We expect the figures for the Small Tortoiseshell and Speckled Wood to increase appreciably during September, a key month for both but the damage to the Small Tortoiseshell from April to August is too severe for its abundance to come close to last year’s population.
Several consecutive months (July 2023-April 2024, except February 2024) with heavy rainfall is the likeliest cause of the declines. While June and July 2024 had below-average rainfall in most places in Ireland, the temperatures were below average everywhere in July and nearly everywhere in June. In August 2024, the temperature was below average in most areas and rainfall varied widely, with Dublin Airport receiving 50% of its average rainfall, compared with areas in the west of Ireland which saw their wettest August since 1992 (Belmullet) and 1985 (Newport).
This is the dark form of the Comma butterfly. She will not breed until spring. She passes the winter by taking shelter in wooded areas. She is darker overall on her uppersides, but her undersides are very much darker than those of the light form. The dark undersides are appropriate for an over-wintering butterfly. Although less numerous in 2024, it is more common than the Small Tortoiseshell where I live in Meath.
Two weather stations had their wettest August on record. These were Malin Head, Co Donegal with 181.3 mm (record length 69 years) and Knock Airport, Co Mayo with 215.4 mm (record length 28 years). The puzzling month is May 2024. Met Eireann reported May 2024 as the warmest on record; however, it was dull and overcast much of the time, with all available monthly sunshine totals below their long-term average. Direct sunshine is important for butterfly and moth larvae. Perhaps this deficiency added to the crisis.
I have yet to see a Small Tortoiseshell in my garden in 2024; I have seen this butterfly in my garden for each of the last 26 years. I hope for a September bailout. We could do with a burst of butterfly joy!
Key References
Judge, M and Lysaght, L. (2024). The Irish Butterfly Monitoring Scheme Newsletter, Issue 16. National Biodiversity Data Centre.
Past weather statements (2024) Met Éireann – The Irish Meteorological Service. Available at: https://www.met.ie/climate/past-weather-statements (Accessed: 03 September 2024).
