Tags
British butterflies, British wildflowers, butterfly, Common blue butterfly, wildflowers on road verges, wildflowers on roadsides
One of the benefits of some local councils not mowing all the road verges at the moment is that wildflowers that would normally be strimmed to death are now being allowed to grow and bloom.
Not only does this mean we get to enjoy their glorious rainbow of colours but the wildflowers’ pollen and nectar also provide a nutritious feast for all the newly emerging insects.
And it was on one such uncut verge that I spotted my first Common blue butterfly of the year today, this stunning, pristine, little male.
If only the councils would mow less all the time, then we’d be able to enjoy both the flowers and the insects all through spring and summer, and it would also go a little way to reversing the huge decline in insect life that’s happening all over the world.
It’s the biggest upside to the downturn — people are for a change letting nature alone. They better enjoy it while they can …
PS – What a gorgeous Lepidoptera!
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I certainly think people are realising what health benefits Nature can bring and how important it is to have green spaces around us. Sadly, our local authorities don’t see that.
And, thanks! 🙂
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We had been enjoying the lady smock in an area that is usually mown, but the workers have been round and cut it all down.
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And in the process probably killed a lot of Orange-tip eggs and larvae. There really needs to be a serious conversation about how councils and road authorities are destroying our environment, with legislation to stop them if they don’t change their ways.
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I am in complete agreement with you. I so wish that my Council would do the same, it is so very frustrating.
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Frustrating, indeed! Most councils have declared climate and environmental emergencies but then change nothing about the way they do things. And neither reasoning nor shouting sways them.
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