A wildlife charity is offering nature lovers in Suffolk free plants to attract a beautiful springtime butterfly into their gardens.
*Please note: All Buckthorn plants have now been claimed*
Butterfly Conservation’s (BC) Suffolk Branch is concerned at the lack of sightings for the sulphur-coloured Brimstone butterfly - which feeds and breeds on Common and Alder Buckthorn.
The Brimstone is a widespread species, but there are a number of towns and villages across the county where few or no sightings have been recorded, such as Sudbury, Stowmarket, Debenham, Eye and Bungay.
Julian Dowding from the Branch said: “The Brimstone is often seen as a harbinger of spring and planting Buckthorn in your garden is a simple, yet really positive way to help this butterfly thrive.
“We have around 500 locally grown plants available for collection or delivery, on a first-come, first-serve basis. We’ll provide planting advice and information about the butterfly, which will travel long distances to find its food plant – so if you plant it, they will come!”
The Brimstone typically emerges from hibernation in March and is one of the easiest butterflies to identify because of its size and unique colour.
The butterfly is fairly large, always sits with its wings closed and is often spotted in gardens in pairs.
The male’s wings are clear yellow, but the female can be identified by her slightly paler upper wings, which have a green tint.
Both sexes are unmistakable at rest, as their wings resemble a pale yellow leaf - with pointed corners, prominent veins and even a spot of ‘mould’ in the centre.
The caterpillar can be seen in May, June or July and is green in colour with a noticeable whitish-blue stripe down its side.
Julian added: “I would love to hear about any sightings of the butterfly or caterpillar so we can keep an eye on how the Brimstone is doing, but please include the date seen and a post code or map grid reference if possible.”
The public can order their Buckthorn bush and submit sightings to Julian by emailing: @email.
A full list of the towns and villages in Suffolk that BC would love to have sightings from are:
- Stowmarket Badley
- Barkingtye
- Monk Soham
- Creeting Mary
- Hollesley
- Butley
- Easton
- Henley
- Crowfield
- Shotley Gate
- Great Cornard
- Hacheston
- Saxmundham
- Kersey
- Lavenham
- Eye
- Orford
- Otley
- Woodbridge
- Cavendish
- Debenham
- Elmswell
- Sudbury
- Melton
- Bungay
- West Row
The first Buckthorn for Brimstones project was set up by BC’s Suffolk Branch in 1998 and ran for five years. Volunteers ran the project again in 2011 and 2018 is the latest efforts to boost the numbers of Brimstone butterflies in the county and target areas with no records.