Butterflies down by
a third on farm land By
Ben Sheppard (Filed:
02/03/2006)
Farmland butterflies have declined by 30
per cent in the last 10 years, a study carried out for
the Government revealed yesterday.
The fall in butterfly numbers reflects
the wider destruction of plant and animal life in
Britain, experts warned. Butterfly Conservation, the
charity which conducted the survey for the Department of
the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra),
monitored 40 species at 620 sites, of which 371 were on
so-called agri-environment schemes, where farmers are
paid to establish wildlife habitats on their land.
However, four out of the eight most
endangered species declined significantly even on the
protected land. Overall, seven species improved, 20
declined, and 13 remained steady.
A lack of understanding from land
managers and over-grazing by rabbits often caused
agri-environment schemes to fail, Butterfly Conservation
concluded. Since the survey was carried out, Defra has
launched new Environmental Stewardship pro-jects that
are tailored to the needs of individual butterfly
species.
Dr Tom Brereton, who led the research,
said: "Each species needs habitats with exact blends of
different grasses, shrubs and bare ground. The
catastrophic decline of butterflies since the Second
World War has been caused by intensive farming and
climate change.
"The results of the survey are worrying
but we are optimistic about the new schemes"
Of the 59 butterflies native to Britain,
five have become extinct in the last 150 years. The most
recent was the Large Blue in 1979. The High Brown
Fritillary and the Heath Fritillary, which were both
common 50 years ago, are now critically endangered.
Jim Knight, the biodiversity minister,
said: "We need to monitor how well Environmental
Stewardship supports butterfly populations, particularly
those most at risk." |