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Make a difference for nature this summer by taking part in the Big Butterfly Count

(C) Paul McCormack

Did you know that there are 59 species of butterfly in the UK and over 2,500 species of moth? Not only are they a stunning sight, but they’re also vital indicators of environmental health, an integral part of the food chain and powerful plant pollinators!

From Friday 15 July to Sunday 7 August, we want you to join us for the Big Butterfly Count, a UK-wide survey which allows us to gage the health of our ecosystem simply by counting the amount and types of butterflies and day-flying moths you see.

To take part, all you need to do is visit the Big Butterfly Count website and download Butterfly Conservation’s handy ID chart or free app to help you identify the winged wonders that whiz past. Then chose the place where you’re going to try and spot butterflies and spend 15 minutes there recording what you see. Finally, add your tally to Butterfly Conservation’s Big Butterfly Count 2022 map – and you’ve made a difference for nature!

Get started here

We’ll be holding events across the Big Butterfly Count season where you can come and join us to learn more about our fluttering friends and take part in a counting session. It's a brilliant way to get outside in the summer sun and feel connected with your local wildlife!

A family bending down in a meadow to spot a butterfly

(C) Butterfly Conservation

On Friday 29 July you can join us at Henfield Hall, near Bitterwell Lake in Coalpit Heath, for a morning of fun butterfly-based activities! From 10.30am – 1pm, we’ll be learning some butterfly identification skills, carrying out a butterfly survey of the surrounding area and creating some butterfly crafts.

Sign up here

With thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund, on Monday 1 August we'll be going on a butterfly walk around one of our My Wild City sites, Hawkfield Meadows. Come along, bring your family and friends for a session of connecting with nature, local spaces and becoming more familiar with the beautiful butterflies on your doorstep! We'll be looking extra closely for small blue butterflies, which can be found at Hawkfield Meadows and are the smallest UK butterfly species! You can get your tickets here.

Our North Somerset Rewilding Champions are holding an event towards the end of the Big Butterfly Count, on Wednesday 3 August the team will be at Elm Farm in Nailsea. They’ll be running 15 minute counts from 10am – 1pm, with guides available and people on hand to help you ID what you see. North Somerset Rewilding Champions is a North Somerset Council project which is lottery funded and delivered in partnership with Avon Wildlife Trust. For more information about this project, you can visit www.n-somerset.gov.uk/rewilding or email NSRewilding@avonwildlifetrust.org.uk

butterfly

(C) George Cook

If you want more ways to get your young explorer involved, then come and meet us at our Grow Wilder site in Frenchay for a special Wildlife Watch Club dedicated to the Big Butterfly Count! With thanks to the players of the People’s Postcode Lottery, on Saturday 6 August your 5 – 10 year olds can find out more about the wonderful world of moths and butterflies, release a moth trap, create a butterfly feeding station and find out how you can help moths and butterflies to thrive where you live too. Grow Wilder is the perfect place for butterfly spotting in Bristol, with its swathes of wildflowers and a variety of habitats, carefully looked after for the benefit of nature.

Find out more about this Wildlife Watch session and future events

If you’d prefer to brush up on your butterfly identification skills before heading out on your own count, you can also sign up to one of our online courses or watch even watch this recording from one of our online butterfly identification events.

Butterfly identification with the North Somerset Rewilding Champions project (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd68bNd0bMg)

We’d love to see what you discover during the Big Butterfly Count! Tag us in your photos @avonwt and share the lepidopterology love

You can also find out how you can make a difference for butterflies and moths near you on our 'Actions' pages.

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