Have you seen a Comma butterfly?

People in Scotland are being asked to look out for the Comma butterfly. Although it went extinct in Scotland in the 1870’s the butterfly has returned and is spreading quickly through the southern half of the country, due to climate change.

The butterfly is moving north at between 12 and 15km/year, and in the last ten years has successfully colonised the Borders, all of the Lothians, Fife and the southern parts of Tayside, with recent sightings reported from Dundee and Pitlochry.

Ragged wing edges distinguish this pretty orange and brown butterfly and make it unmistakeable. This, together with the distinctive white comma-shaped marking on the undersides, mean it is an easy butterfly to identify.

Submit your sighting

Help us track this butterfly’s re-colonisation of Scotland. If you have spotted a Comma, please submit your record on-line using the form below or email us multiple sightings.

The information you provide will be used by Butterfly Conservation and Biological Record Centres. If you submit a record we may contact you by post or e-mail about this survey, but please observe the relevant data protection options below in regard to receiving additional information about our conservation, membership or fundraising activities.

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