Habitat can be created and enhanced for butterflies and moths by incorporating scrapes, butterfly banks and foodplants which can add a variety of aspects, incorporate bare ground and encourage the growth of important butterfly and moth larval foodplants.
Downloadable fact sheets have been created on some methods of habitat creation and enhancement.
Creating scrapes for butterflies and moths: Scrapes can be a simple and effective method of providing bare ground habitat where large-scale more complex habitat creation methods are inappropriate. Scrapes add variations in aspect and encourage a diversity of butterfly and moth foodplants (examples of species which can benefit; Chalk Carpet, Grayling, Small Blue, Striped Lychnis, Dingy Skipper, Wall and Grizzled Skipper).
Creating a butterfly bank: Butterfly banks provide open sunny areas, bare ground and encourage growth of the early successional herbs that rely on disturbed ground, the variety of aspects also provide a range of breeding habitats (examples of species which can benefit: Grizzled Skipper, Chimney Sweeper Moth, Small Copper, Six-spot Burnet Moth, Common Blue, Dingy Skipper, Brown Argus).
Seeding and plug-planting for butterflies: Even the best sites for butterflies and moths may lack important larval foodplants or nectar resources. This fact sheet suggests some ways of increasing the variety of native herbs and grasses.