Locally extinct butterfly makes remarkable return to Stirlingshire - Butterfly Conservation

A once locally-extinct butterfly has made a remarkable return to Stirlingshire after a 100 year absence, Butterfly Conservation and The Future Forest Company reveal today.

The Northern Brown Argus was once found in abundance throughout the Ochill Hills, but due to habitat loss including overgrazing, was believed extinct in Stirlingshire and across much of its former range.

Very few colonies remain, with small numbers clinging on at Alva Glen in Clackmannanshire, living on steep crags where sheep cannot graze the food plants required by their caterpillars too heavily.

However, in a remarkable discovery, a volunteer from Butterfly Conservation found Northern Brown Argus in her garden in Blairlogie, just inside the Stirlingshire border, after planting Common rock-rose, the only plant eaten by Northern Brown Argus caterpillars.

This sparked hope for the once locally-extinct species. Staff and volunteers from Butterfly Conservation and The Future Forest Company conducted a series of searches on the hillside at the award-winning Dumyat Estate in Blairlogie, discovering a few small colonies of the butterfly on the steep hills.

In another exciting turn of events, the Northern Brown Argus is now confirmed to be breeding at the site, which is owned by The Future Forest Company, giving hope for the return of this species across its former habitat.

David Hill, Conservation Manager at Butterfly Conservation, said: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime event, the re-emergence of a previously locally-extinct species in its former habitat is incredibly special and rare. We’re committed to protecting the Northern Brown Argus and helping it to thrive, with hopes that it will spread across its former home and stretch right across the Ochill Hills once again.”