As painted lady summer arrives in UK, we can all help work out how 'wonderful' it is
Painted lady butterflies begin their journey to the UK in sub-Saharan Africa but it is their grandchildren who actually arrive
Get ready to experience a “wonder of the natural world”. That’s the message from Butterfly Conservation’s Professor Richard Fox, with a once-in-a-decade ‘painted lady summer’ now underway in Britain.
Huge numbers of the butterflies are being born after their parents took part in one of the world’s longest insect migrations – so vast that it takes several generations to complete.
Their journey starts in sub-Saharan Africa when the painted ladies fly to North Africa to mate. Their offspring cross the Mediterranean Sea to southern Europe, where they mate, and then their children travel to the UK, where the fourth generation is born in the summer. Every ten years or so, their population surges dramatically for reasons that are not well understood.
The Big Butterfly Count found less than 16,000 last year, but in the 2019 painted lady summer, more than 420,000 were recorded.
So how wonderful will this wonder be? Well, if you want to help the scientists find out, the Big Butterfly Count runs until August 9 and all you need to do is spend 15 minutes in a sunny spot outside.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.