Butterfly transects are a way of measuring changes in the abundance and variety of butterflies present on a site from year to year.
This requires a commitment to record weekly throughout the six-month period in which butterflies fly in the UK, or if monitoring a single species, the flight period of that species. By sticking to a consistent recording methodology the results are comparable from year to year.
When data from transects all over the UK are combined this can provide valuable information on changes in butterfly numbers nationally. The data also enables us to evaluate changes in butterfly populations on a single site and can reflect changes in the effects of management when compared with trends from many other sites.
Butterflies are uniquely placed to act as indicators of the state of the environment, allowing us to assess the impacts of climate change and the progress of government policy initiatives such as the UK Biodiversity Action Plan, agri-environment schemes and site condition monitoring of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs).
In Warwickshire we currently walk 39 transects as follows:-
|
| Site Name |
|
Transect Type |
|
Species |
| Baddesley Spoilheap |
|
Species Transect |
|
Dingy Skipper |
| Bishops Heaps |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Bubbenhall Meadows |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Bubbenhall Wood |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Drayton |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Harbury Spoilbank (2) |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Hearsall Common |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Lake View Park (2) |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Malpass Spoilbank |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Newdigate Pit |
|
Species Transect |
|
Dingy Skipper |
| Oversley Wood |
|
Species Transect |
|
White Admiral, Silver-washed Fritillary |
| Ryton Wood Meadows |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Ryton Wood Meadows (2) |
|
Species Transect |
|
Dingy Skipper, Grizzled Skipper, Green Hairstreak |
| Ryton Wood (4) |
|
Full Transects |
|
|
| Ryton Wood (3) |
|
Species Transect |
|
Purple Hairstreak, White-letter Hairstreak, Purple Emperor |
| Snitterfield Bushes |
|
Species Transect |
|
Grizzled Skipper, White Admiral, Silver-washed Fritillary |
| Stockton |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Sutton Park (2) |
|
Species Transect |
|
Green Hairstreak |
| Ufton Fields |
|
Species Transect |
|
Dingy Skipper, Grizzled Skipper, Green Hairstreak |
| Wappenbury Wood |
 |
Full Transect |
|
|
| Warwick Horticulture Research Int. |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Weddington Disused Railway (4) |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Weston & Waverley Woods |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Whitacre Heath NR |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Windmill Blast Bank |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Windmill Hill Community Nature Area |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
| Windmill Spoilbank |
|
Full Transect |
|
|
