Natural England works for people, places and nature to conserve and enhance biodiversity, landscapes and wildlife in rural, urban, coastal and marine areas. We conserve and Enjoying moths and enhance the natural environment for its intrinsic value, the wellbeing and enjoyment of people, and the economic prosperity it brings. butterflies in your garden www.naturalengland.org.uk © Natural England 2007 ISBN 978-1-84754-012-6 Catalogue code NE25 Written by Peter Marren. Designed by RR Donnelley Front cover image: The comma butterfly is far more widespread than it was 30 years ago. Jill Pakenham/Avico www.naturalengland.org.uk Enjoying moths and butterflies in your garden Anyone with a garden, no matter what brightest, like the peacock and the its size, can help our butterflies and small tortoiseshell. Several hundred moths. In doing so, we also help species of moth may visit the smallest ourselves. These species are among our garden, although many of them are most beautiful insects. good at keeping out of sight! All butterflies – and many moths – fly Telling moths and butterflies apart by day and visit gardens in search of flower nectar, and also warmth and What’s the difference between a shelter. Some species may find suitable butterfly and a moth? Surprisingly little! food plants in gardens where they can Butterflies all fly by day (and a few also lay their eggs. Some of these plants at night, when they will fly towards may be wild, while others, such as honesty, act as alternative non-native host-plants. Very few species cause damage to flowers or vegetables. On the other hand, butterflies and moths are important pollinators and good indicators of a healthy environment. Many flowers that attract butterflies and moths are also a magnet for bees and other beneficial insects. And who wouldn’t enjoy the sight of the first brimstone or orange-tip of the year eagerly supping at a garden primrose, or the sleek form of a hawk-moth hovering over honeysuckle at dusk? Butterflies and moths are delightful. The large yellow underwing Although only about 25 butterfly keeps its warning colours The brimstone butterfly is often one of the first of concealed when at rest. species regularly come to gardens, they the year to be seen in some gardens. Rob Wolton/Natural England include many of the largest and Chris Gibson/Natural England 2 3 light) and have distinctive clubbed (the only exceptions are some of the antennae. Most, but not all, moths fly rather moth-like skippers). Only a few by night and have either wiry or moths do this. feathered antennae. A very few, such as The distinguishing feature shared by the burnets, have clubbed antennae all butterflies and moths is their similar to butterflies. coloured wings. In some cases the Most butterflies rest with their wings colours are brilliant, even iridescent, upright, perpendicular to their back while in others, especially moths, they The muslin moth with its extraordinary antennae is on the wing in May and June. Jill Pakenham/Avico are more subdued – but in their way no meaning and a message. less beautiful – and designed to Most moths are less colourful than conceal the resting insect. The colours butterflies. Their subtle tints of grey, are formed from tiny scales which are pink and brown help them to blend arranged in overlapping rows rather into the background during daylight. like roof tiles. Some of the brightest- Some disguise themselves as dead coloured butterflies have contrasting leaves, bits of wood or even bird wings, brilliant when open for flight droppings. Others, however, like the but dull beneath to disguise the insect day-flying burnets and tiger-moths, are when it has settled and so become as brightly coloured as any butterfly. more vulnerable. Some moths, like the Moths also have a wide variety of large yellow underwing, have bright resting postures, from outspread wings Moths may imitate anything from wood or leaves to bird droppings to keep out of view of predators. hindwings which they flash like a to wings folded over or around the Top left: Buff tip. Rob Wolton/Natural England. Top right: Waved umber. Rob Wolton/Natural England. Bottom left: Beaded chestnut. Rob Wolton/Natural England. Bottom right: Chinese character moth. warning light when disturbed. Every back with the hindwings hidden from Rob Petley-Jones/Natural England wing colour and every pattern has view. 4 5 Why butterflies and moths visit gardens Most butterflies and moths feed on nectar, which they suck from flowers using their long proboscis like a straw. The sugar-rich drink provides them with the instant energy needed for flight. But not all flowers are equally attractive. They need to draw the insect in with colour and scent, and store the nectar where a butterfly or moth – but Rosy rustic. Rob Wolton/Natural England not too many other kinds of insect – can reach it. Butterflies seem to be whether they are ‘weeds’ such as particularly attracted to blue or pink dandelions, or trees like birch and flowers. Many moths like pale flowers willow – not to mention cabbages and that reflect the light and are strongly currant bushes. The more food plants scented at dusk. there are, the more species a garden Peach blossom. Rob Wolton/Natural England Most gardens will have some food will potentially support. Native trees plants for moths and butterflies, and shrubs have by far the largest How many species? species of butterfly compared to about 2,500 moths. British butterfly species Moths and butterflies belong to the are outnumbered by day-flying moths order Lepidoptera (meaning ‘scaly- alone. winged’), but less than 10 per cent of the world’s Lepidoptera are butterflies, Names the rest are moth species. In Britain, the Butterflies and the larger moths all have proportion is even smaller, with only 70 English names. Most butterfly names derive from their colours – white, yellow, blue, copper and tortoiseshell. The red admiral is named after a naval flag, the peacock after the eyed tail of that bird (its original name was ‘peacock’s eye’). Moth names are far more imaginative. We have quakers, drabs and rustics, hawk-moths and tiger moths, brocades and carpets, darts and spindles, burnets and pugs – not to mention some rather obscure species with names like ‘the anomalous’, Feathered thorn. Rob Wolton/Natural England ‘the uncertain’ and ‘the confused’! Cream-spot tiger. Roger Key/Natural England 6 7 brownfield sites, especially in the London area. Among them is the tree- lichen beauty, the small ranunculus and the scarce bordered straw. The last is a mixed blessing as it has a taste for bedding plants, like antirrhinums and carnations, as well as tomatoes and other vegetables. As a result of climate change the moths and butterflies of our gardens are changing as never before. You never know what will turn up next! Which plants are the most attractive? In general, the flowers that butterflies The hummingbird hawk-moth, seen The lovely ruby tiger moth. here feeding on buddleja, is an Rob Wolton/Natural England and moths like are the traditional increasingly common summer migrant cottage kinds that most closely from mainland Europe. resemble their wild counterparts. Andy Darrington/Avico A changing climate Buddleja or ‘the butterfly bush’ is Wide-ranging insects like some famous for attracting butterflies, number of dependent species, but sheltered ‘hot-spots’ in full sunshine butterflies and moths are quick to especially when in a warm spot by a some garden flowers, including sweet where butterflies and moths will respond to a changing climate. During brick wall. Ideally, it should be planted William, delphinium and mint, are also congregate. All in all, gardens are likely the past few years, red admirals have within sight of a window so you can food plants for particular moths. to have far more places like this than hibernated successfully in gardens and watch the butterflies while cooking a the equivalent area of ‘wild’ taken to the wing on mild sunny days meal or washing up. Don’t put it too Another great advantage of gardens is countryside. in the winter. The hummingbird that they are sheltered. Often, too, they hawkmoth, too, is now surviving the are sunny and offer a variety of small- winter in warm areas and feeds on scale habitats which butterflies and early flowers. moths can use. The holly blue butterfly and many moths are drawn to old ivy- The increase in these attractive insects covered walls. Garden ponds are a is a sign that our winters are getting refuge for some species, with marshy milder. In addition, new species are food plants like water mint and finding a home in Britain and many of bulrush, as well as bur-reed or water- these are increasingly found in lily for the aquatic caterpillars of the gardens. The colourful, day-flying china-mark moths. Species needing Jersey tiger-moth, once confined to quiet and shady places to hibernate or South Devon, is now found along the sleep during the hottest part of summer south coast and increasingly in the The humble dandelion is a food plant for a can often find refuge in outhouses and number of species of moth. London area. Many less striking moths garden sheds. Some gardens will have Chris Gibson/Natural England are also colonising gardens and Brown china-mark. Rob Wolton/Natural England 8 9 flowering shrub for a sunny position live near the south coast it may be and, like many butterfly plants, is a worth planting scented tobacco plants magnet for bees. Butterfly Conservation on the off-chance that a convolvulus has produced a Top 100 list of butterfly hawk-moth will drop by.