Rare Butterfly spotted at Daneway Banks

Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard By Juliette Nicholls


THE RARE Large Blue butterfly has returned to Daneway Banks nature reserve, near Sapperton, for the first time this year.

These beautiful and very rare butterflies were reintroduced to the reserve in 2002 after being extinct in the UK since the 1960s.

Daneway Banks is renowned as the one place in Gloucestershire where the Large Blue butterfly can be found, as it is uniquely suited for the butterflies to thrive, containing the habitat and special conditions required for it to breed.

Stroud Area Reserves Manager Pete Bradshaw said, “It’s great to see them returning again this year.

“We work so hard to get the conditions right for them, so it’s heartening to see them persevering.”

There is a short window in which to see the Large Blues, but if the weather conditions stay fine, they might be around for the next few weeks.

Beautiful butterfly and how lovely that it's no longer extinct in the UK. I do hope they'll spread around the UK now.

Thanks SM

Lai