NWT Wildlife Spotter Survey

Butterflies and moths are good indicator species, they shows us when something has changed where they live, whether this be a change in the climate or a change to the habitat they live in.

The common blue is a small blue butterfly that flies throughout the summer between April and October. The most widespread of the blue butterflies, it is found in a variety of habitats, including heathland, woodland rides, grassy meadows, parks, large gardens and waste ground. The caterpillars feed on clovers, restharrow, common bird's-foot trefoil and related plants.

The male common blue has bright blue wings with a brown border and white fringe. The female is brown with a blue 'dusting' near the body. It has orange spots on the underside of its hindwings, whereas the similar holly blue has black spots. It is larger than the silver-studded blues, and brighter than the chalkhill blue.

Did you know?

· In bad weather and at night the common blue roosts, head down on a grass stem. Often several of these butterflies may be seen together on a single stem of grass.

· There are typically two generations of common blues in a year, but if the weather is warm, there can be up to three broods over the spring and summer.

· The caterpillar eats the underside of young leaves, leaving the upper surface intact, which gives silvery blotches on the plant.

The medium-sized meadow brown is one of the commonest grassland butterflies, on the wing in the summer, from June to September. It also occurs in parks, gardens and cemeteries. It even flies in dull weather when other butterflies are inactive. It is mainly brown with washed-out orange patches on the forewings. The best way to identify the 'brown' butterflies is by looking at the eyespots on their wings. The combination of its relatively large

size, orange patches on the forewings only, one eyespot on the forewing and none at all on the hindwings, is unique to the meadow brown. The meadow brown also has only one small white 'pupil' in the eyespots, instead of two like the gatekeeper.

Did you know?

Males are much more active than females, spending their time patrolling and investigating other butterflies that come near their perches. Unless feeding or egg-laying, females spend much of their time sat on the ground, hidden among the grass.

· The males are darker and slightly small than the females.

· The meadow brown butterfly has a short lifespan of around 2 to 6 weeks.

The six-spot burnet is a medium-sized, day-flying moth, commonly found in grasslands, woodland rides and sand dunes, where the caterpillars feed on common bird's-foot trefoil. The adults feed on the nectar of knapweed, thistles and other grassland flowers. It is a glossy black with red spots on its long, narrow wings. There are six similar species of burnet moth in the UK: this is the only one with six red spots on each forewing; the other common species have five spots.

Did you know?

The red spots of burnet moths indicate to predators that they are poisonous: they release hydrogen cyanide when attacked.

· Occasionally the spots can be vary from yellow or black.

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