With all the gloomy stories that we normally read in the news about global warming and population declines, it’s refreshing to read that populations of the speckled wood butterfly are booming.
The species has seen an 84% rise in numbers in the last 40 years, with a 71% increase in spread of habitat. Global warming has resulted in the species moving further north, and sightings are now widely recorded in Scotland.
The speckled wood butterfly is aptly named, favouring partially shaded woodland with dappled sunlight. The population growth is puzzling scientists as many other butterfly species, as much as three quarters of UK butterflies, are in decline.
Image: Michael Palmer
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