Join butterfly count in 'rescue mission' for declining insects

PEOPLE across the UK are being urged to take part in an annual butterfly count after nature experts declared an "emergency" last year due to record low numbers.

- EMILY BEAMENT

The Big Butterfly Count, organised by wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation over three weeks in the summer, gets members of the public to spend 15 minutes recording the butterflies they see in their garden, park or countryside.

This year, the charity is urging people to take part in what it describes as a "nationwide rescue mission" for the UK's ailing butterfly species, to provide data that helps scientists understand where butterflies are thriving, struggling or moving due to habitat loss or restoration.