UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme has won a prestigious award at the RSPB Scotland’s Nature Awards 2022.
Co-sponsored by NatureScot, the ceremony, on 18 November, recognised those making a strong impact in local communities, businesses, and schools to help nature across Scotland.
UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS) was awarded the Citizen Science award for its work covering butterfly populations across the UK for over forty years. UKBMS is one of the largest insect monitoring schemes in the world, mainly focusing on fixed transect routes to record butterflies every week using defined methodology.
The majority of data are collected by volunteer citizen scientists who, after receiving training from UKBMS, conduct the scientifically rigorous recording. In 2021 alone, over 200 volunteers were involved in collecting data at 232 sites across Scotland.
This programme, which is organised and funded by Butterfly Conservation, the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, the British Trust for Ornithology and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, has produced long-term trends for butterflies. The data have contributed to numerous publications, including State of UK Butterflies 2015, and contributions to State of Nature studies. As a result, the data collected also help Butterfly Conservation target conservation action where it is most needed.
Ian Middlebrook, UKBMS Programme Lead, said:
“This award is a recognition of the citizen science volunteers who undertake thousands of hours of butterfly monitoring every year. We are extremely fortunate to be supported by people who know the importance of collecting this data carefully, and who enjoy the feeling of getting outside to look for butterflies on sunny days. We value them greatly.”