A ground-breaking project to save a butterfly from extinction in West Sussex has been awarded more than £20,000, Butterfly Conservation (BC) can reveal.
The wildlife charity will use the money from the Veolia Environmental Trust to create new habitat for the Pearl-bordered Fritillary at the Charlton Forest near Chichester.
The butterfly, which is now restricted to just a couple of sites within the region, has been seen in very low numbers close to this site and experts fear the Pearl-bordered Fritillary will disappear unless urgent action is taken to increase the local population.
The grant, alongside additional support from the Forestry Commission, will be used to open up shaded areas of woodland to create the sunny clearings required by the butterfly to breed successfully.
Other rare species like the Duke of Burgundy butterfly and Plumed Prominent moth are also set to benefit from the work.
BC’s Project Officer, Neil Hulme, said: “The Pearl-bordered Fritillary has suffered a severe decline in the South East and to lose this species from the Sussex countryside is unthinkable, so I’m delighted that Veolia has stepped in to help in this way.
“The site at Charlton Forest forms part of a larger area within which other conservation groups, such as the Murray Downland Trust and Graffham Down Trust, are already improving wildlife habitats for many other species.
“The project has also received support from the Goodwood Estate, Chichester District Council and South Downs National Park Authority and by working together I am confident we can turn this situation around and save this beautiful butterfly for future generations to enjoy.”
The Pearl-bordered Fritillary was once known as the ‘Woodman’s Friend’ due to its habit of following the sequence of clearings made by coppice workers and foresters and was common and widespread until the middle of the last century.
A report produced by BC and the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, The State of the UK’s Butterflies 2015, recorded a 95% drop in the butterfly’s national range between 1976 and 2014. It’s thought this decline is most likely down to changes in the climate and in the way we manage our woodlands.
Forestry Commission Ecologist, Jay Doyle, said: “The Forestry Commission is very happy to be part of this project to improve the forest surroundings for the threatened Pearl-bordered Fritillary. I’m very hopeful that we’ll be able to reverse the decline facing so many butterflies by working with Butterfly Conservation to enhance and create essential breeding habitat.”