Hummingbird hawk moth and painted lady survey 2009

The Painted Lady Butterfly and Humming-bird Hawk-moth are arriving from Africa and becoming increasingly common in the UK. To find out just how common, we need the public’s help.

Butterfly Conservation are running an online survey in 2009 specifically targeting two migrant insects which come to Britain from North Africa and the southern Mediterranean each year and are often seen in gardens: the Humming-bird Hawk-moth and the Painted Lady butterfly.

Numbers of both species appear to be increasing, probably as a result of climate change and the Humming-bird Hawk-moth is beginning to survive our warmer winters.

Many mysteries remain to be solved about insect migration – we do not know, for example, whether the British ‘born’ offspring of these insects migrate southwards to avoid the winter here. With your help, BC will track the arrival, spread and possible departure of these two beautiful and exciting species during 2009.

The online survey is already up and running. If you see one of these amazing animals during 2009, please log your sighting using the simple online form at http://www.butterfly-conservation.org/

Details of the 2008 survey can be found here.