Grasslands are home to some of our most enigmatic species of butterflies and moths, from the rare species like the stunning Large Blue butterfly to commoner species such as the red and black Burnet moths. But, like the rest of nature, many of our grassland butterflies and moths are in crisis.
At Butterfly Conservation our efforts to recover threatened butterflies and moths also provide nature-based solutions to climate change. Restoring flower-rich grasslands provides multiple benefits, including locking carbon in the soil, reducing flood risk, and acting as critical reservoirs for our pollinators.
This is why Butterfly Conservation was a founding member of the Grasslands+ campaign, joining forces with Plantlife and Bumblebee Conservation Trust to protect the planet’s grasslands, savannahs, steppes, and meadows.
Our research shows that 76% of UK butterflies have declined in abundance or distribution since 1976. Larger moths have declined by 33% since 1968. The loss of grasslands across the UK is a critical factor in these declines and if we do not change how we manage land then we will see more and more of them disappear.
Butterflies and moths are crucial parts of the ecosystem, and their disappearance has negative knock-on effects throughout the food chain. Despite some great conservation successes at Butterfly Conservation – particularly saving individual threatened species – all the indicators show that biodiversity continues to decline at an alarming rate.
Saving, restoring, and protecting grasslands is essential to enable wildlife to make a recovery and help combat climate change. The Grasslands+ partnership campaign has been highlighted through a Terra Carter case study, which explains more about how grasslands can be used for the benefit of plants, people, pollinators, and the planet.
Find out more here: https://terracarta.report/case-studies/grasslandsplus
Julie Williams, Butterfly Conservation CEO