Butterfly count at 14-year low - conservationist

Natalie Norton works for Butterfly Conservation at Prees Heath Common

The number of butterflies has reached a 14-year low, according to a Shropshire conservationist for the species.

Natalie Norton, who works for Butterfly Conservation at Prees Heath Common near Whitchurch, is urging people to take part in a UK-wide survey to count the number of butterflies in the area.

The Big Butterfly Count asks members of the public to count how many different types they can see in 15 minutes and log it in an online survey.

The deadline for the count, which helps assess the health of the environment, is on Sunday.

Prees Heath Common is the last last sanctuary in the Midlands for the Silver-studded Blue butterfly

Ms Norton told BBC Radio Shropshire about how the species reacts to different types of weather.

She said: "It's a combination of factors. In spring we had the rain and summer the temperature was lower than average.

"Butterflies are really reliant on warm and sheltered conditions - we just haven't seen that this year.

"We've gone from one extreme to another. It's that unpredictable change of extreme events that's really affecting the butterfly species."

Prees Heath Common, in Shropshire

Prees Heath is the last sanctuary in the Midlands for the silver-studded blue butterfly.

The landscape officer said data from the survey would help give conservationists an indication of which types of butterfly are most common and which haven't been recorded at all.

She said: "It's not all bad news, the more data we have, the better picture we have of it.

"The data shows numbers of butterflies are down, which is a stark warning of what's happening to the wider natural environment.

"The more we know the more we can take action and hopefully improve the situation."