Natural History Wanderings

NPR reports on the British Big Butterfly Count

Any time between now and Aug. 12, participants are invited to sit in a sunny spot for 15 minutes and keep their eyes open, marking every butterfly they see. Every brimstone and every common blue, every painted lady and each peacock.

Last year, more than 60,000 people participated, counting more than half a million individual butterflies.

Butterfly Conservation, the group that organizes the count, says that since the count began in 2010, the data recorded by citizens showed changes in the butterfly population that “match closely with those from much more intensive, transect-style butterfly monitoring.” That is, the crowd-sourced data is actually useful for measuring how various species of butterfly fare in different years.

via Britain’s Big Butterfly Count Begins, With David Attenborough Leading The Charge : NPR