Why butterfly numbers in the West Midlands are down – and where you might spot them

People taking part in Butterfly Conservation's Big Butterfly Count are seeing just over half the number of butterflies they were spotting this time last year, the charity said.

As the count enters its final week, members of the public are being urged to get outside for 15 minutes and record the number and type of butterflies they see – and to enter their results even if they see very few or none – to help experts understand more about how the insects are faring.

Experts say the unusually wet and windy spring, coupled with colder than usual temperatures so far this summer could be contributing to the absence of butterflies.

While they say there could be a late emergence of the insects if there is a prolonged sunny spell, numbers are currently the lowest recorded in the 14 years of the Big Butterfly Count.

And it is not just the weather this year that is a problem, with 80 per cent of butterfly species declining in the UK since the 1970s, mainly due to habitat loss, pesticide use and climate change.

Because populations are already depleted, they are less resilient to bad weather, Butterfly Conservation warns.

Dr Dan Hoare, director of Conservation at Butterfly Conservation, said: "Butterflies need some warm and dry conditions to be able to fly around and mate.

"If the weather doesn't allow for this there will be fewer opportunities to breed, and the lack of butterflies now is likely the knock-on effect of our very dreary spring and early summer."

And he said: "The lack of butterflies this year is a warning sign to us all. Nature is sounding the alarm and we must listen.

"Butterflies are a key indicator species. When they are in trouble we know the wider environment is in trouble too."

He urged people to record what they were or were not seeing in the way of butterflies as part of the annual count to give experts the evidence to take "vital action" to conserve species.

The West Midlands is considered important to butterflies and has a dedicated reserve at Prees Heath Common in Shropshire, which is the last sanctuary for the silver-studded blue butterfly in the Midlands. The reserve is on a large grassland area that had been a Second World War airfield. A major restoration project is re-instating heathland and grassland vegetation across much of the site, where species including the common blue, small cooper, small heath, gatekeeper and meadow brown are also seen.

The reserve covers the western half of Prees Heath, a registered common that extends to some 126 hectares. The old airfield runway runs down the middle of the reserve and the airfield control tower still stands near the northern end. On the blocks of arable land, the sandy sub-soil has been brought to the surface so that heathland and grassland can be re-established by seeding.

Butterfly Conservation purchased the reserve in 2006 after a long campaign and appeal in association with Prees Heath Commoners, local supporters and Shropshire Wildlife Trust. It is a popular location to visit for 'butterfly spotters' because of its link to the silver-studded blue.

Other reserves in the West Midlands are at Ewyas Harold Meadows in Herefordshire and Grafton Wood, Monkwood and Trench Wood, all in Worcestershire.

The butterfly count is continuing this week as it is revealed a rare butterfly is being reintroduced into the Welsh countryside decades after it disappeared.

Hundreds of marsh fritillary butterflies, with their unmistakeable cream and orange wings, can now be spotted on Llantrisant Common in Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales.

The man behind this resurgence is Rob Parry, the founder of Initiative for Nature Conservation Cymru.

His team took caterpillars from the wild, reared them and released them back into the area – a controversial approach but one he feels is increasingly necessary.

"Many of our species are on the brink, right on the edge, and we can't afford to monitor them disappearing," he said.

"Once we do that – getting them back is so much harder. That's why these projects – where we are intervening before they become extinct - is really important."

The Big Butterfly Count ends on Sunday August 4. For more information and to take part people can download the free Big Butterfly Count app or visit bigbutterflycount.org