Small numbers of Black-Veined White butterflies have been spotted in fields and hedgerows in south-east London.
As the name suggests, the medium-sized white butterflies have distinctive black vein markings on their wings, and were spotted among hawthorn and blackthorn trees right on the edge of London.
The butterfly was previously thought to be extinct until it was spotted fluttering this week.
Black-Veined Whites were first listed as a British species during the reign of King Charles II.
The insect’s last official sighting in the UK was in 1925. Winston Churchill was a fan, and attempted to reintroduce the extinct species into his back garden in the 1940s. He hired the UK’s leading lepidopterist to help him and was hopeful that the butterflies would feast on “fountains of honey and water” one day. But he failed in his attempt.
It is believed that this species died out in Britain as a result of a series of wet and chilly autumns in the 1920s. However, they continued to thrive in warmer climates in Europe and north Africa.
The charity Butterfly Conservation told the BBC it is likely that the insects were released, but at this time they don’t know who they were released by or why. They also added that these sightings do not mean the species has spontaneously recovered.
Which other British butterflies are extinct?
A whole host of other British butterflies are now officially classed as extinct, according to the charity: Large Tortoiseshell, Large Copper, and Mazarine Blue. While 24 (41 per cent of remaining species) are classed as threatened (eight endangered, 16 vulnerable) and five (nine per cent) as near threatened.
“Shockingly, half of Britain’s remaining butterfly species are listed as threatened or near threatened on the new Red List. Even prior to this new assessment, British butterflies were among the most threatened in Europe, and now the number of threatened species in Britain has increased by five, an increase of more than one-quarter,” the Head of Science for Butterfly Conservation, Dr Richard Fox, said.
“While some species have become less threatened, and a few have even dropped off the Red List, the overall increase clearly demonstrates that the deterioration of the status of British butterflies continues apace.”
