Butterflies under our noses

Spring butterflies in south London

 London is viewed by many as a wildlife desert, but this is far from the truth. In fact, there is wildlife right under our noses, if we only care to look.

 During March and April 2017, I made visits to green spaces in Lambeth, Southwark and Wandsworth - all densely populated inner London boroughs. Some of these sites - like Stave Hill Ecological Park in Rotherhithe, Nunhead Cemetery near Peckham and Battersea Park are Local Nature Reserves. Others, like Burgess Park in Southwark, are "ordinary" urban parks.
I was able to identify 11 species of butterfly in March - Comma, Brimstone, Green-veined White, Small White, Large White, Orange Tip, Speckled Wood, Holly Blue, Red Admiral, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell. 

 In fact the commonest butterfly across these sites in March was the Comma Polygonia c-album, which is having a good year. 

 And the Holly Blue Celastrina argiolus could be seen almost anywhere where there was ivy growing nearby, including along urban streets.

The Boroughs are seriously strapped for cash, but they all have Biodiversity Action Plans in place - even if they were drafted some years ago. The presence of good numbers of butterflies in Burgess Park is directly attributable to efforts by the council, supported by the Friends group (http://www.friendsofburgesspark.org.uk/). There are now several "wild" areas of Burgess Park that are managed for wildlife and two butterfly species have been selected as "indicators" of habitat quality.

These are
  • Specked Wood Parage aegeria, the presence of which demonstrates good structural woodland and woodland edge habitats, and 
  • Common Blue Polyommatus icarus, the presence of which demonstrates good developing grasslands rich in wildflowers 
London's green spaces have good wildlife potential, including for butterflies. A modest amount of well-directed effort will see that potential develop. Let's hope that the boroughs and those managing the parks and green spaces can still find the necessary resources in these austere times.


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