Butterfly Conservation awarded £250,000 to help Large Heath butterflies
Butterfly Conservation has been awarded quarter of a million pounds for a new project to help one of the UK's most vulnerable butterflies in Wales.
Butterfly Conservation will employ a new full-time officer to lead a project researching what conservation methods can benefit the species on the peat bogs where it lives.
Butterfly Conservation Head of Conservation in Wales, Alan Sumnall, said: "We are so pleased to get this fantastic funding. We've wanted to explore if peat bog restoration is good for the Large Heath for years, but this project will tell us for certain what techniques are helping the most so that we can target our efforts even more.
"This will be good for Large Heath and all the other species connected to it."
The Large Heath butterfly lives in open, wet areas such as bogs and moorland.
Sadly, the species has declined dramatically in England and Wales over the past 100 years, largely due to habitat loss.
In Wales it is now found in only six landscapes, mostly in the north west, but Butterfly Conservation will focus its efforts across the range.
The charity is hoping to recruit its new project officer to start work in April this year and the project is set to run for two years.
It will also aim to recruit and train new volunteers to help at key sites and raise more awareness about the Large Heath.
The latest round of the Nature Networks Fund has awarded grants to 11 projects that aim to improve the condition of Wales’ protected land, freshwater and marine sites.
Funding will allow the projects to help nature recover while also encouraging people to connect with nature.
This element of the Nature Networks Fund provides grants of up to £250,000 to individuals and organisations working to strengthen Wales’ natural heritage. The fund is distributed by the Heritage Fund in partnership with the Welsh Government and Natural Resources Wales.
Deputy First Minister with responsibility for Climate Change Huw Irranca-Davies said: "I am so pleased 11 more projects will benefit from a share of £2.7m Welsh Government funding through the Nature Networks Fund.
"We are committed to tackling the nature emergency, working together with organisations and people right across the country. This partnership between Welsh Government, the Heritage Fund and Natural Resources Wales is key to making positive change for people and nature across Wales."
The good news for Butterfly Conservation comes hot on the heels of a visit to another of the charity's projects in Wales from Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan last week.
Butterfly Conservation
27 Jan 2025
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