THE IRISH BUTTERFLY population increased by almost a third last year compared to 2012.
The Irish Butterfly Monitoring Scheme recorded 66,000 butterflies representing 33 species in 2013.
That’s an increase of 32 per cent.
Ecologist Doctor Tomás Murray is project co-ordinator of the scheme, he said,
“Butterflies are increasingly recognised as key environmental indicators because they respond rapidly to changes in both the Irish landscape and climate”.
In the last 20 years, half of the butterfly population has been lost across Europe. Addressing this, Murray said,
Programmes like the Irish Butterfly Monitoring Scheme are critical in keeping an eye on Irish butterflies to identify those species who need the most help before their populations go past a point of no return.
“Even though butterfly populations overall did well last year, there are some winners and losers, and analysis of which species did well and those who didn’t can reveal current changes in Ireland’s environment”.
The National Biodiversity Data Centre co-ordinate the monitoring schemes for butterflies and bumblebees.
Over 120 volunteer citizen-scientists across Ireland were involved in the latest report released on 25 March. The public can get involved by contacting the centre.
Doctor Liam Lysaght, director of the National Biodiversity Data Centre, added,
Through our monitoring schemes and the records submitted to our website, we’ve made huge gains in the knowledge of Irish biodiversity in the past five years.
“Now we have an opportunity to use this information to directly inform the protections of Ireland’s wildlife.”
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