UKBMS Survey Results 2025 @Peel Park & the Coppice LNR

Map showing the butterfly transect around Peel Park & the Coppice.

Throughout 2025, Project Officer, Robert Gabryszak, has continued with weekly UKBMS surveys at Peel Park & the Coppice LNR. The walk, or transect, starts at Pleck Meadow and continues through multiple habitats at the site, finishing on the heathland. 2024 was a devastating year for pollinator populations, sparking a Butterfly Emergency Declaration from Butterfly Conservation, with several other invertebrate charities supporting the urgency for immediate change to prevent further decline.

2025 has offered a much more optimistic outlook, as sunnier weather has resulted in a significant uptick. However, the main threats to invertebrate populations are still at play; habitat loss, pesticide use, and climate change are continuing to impact UK butterflies negatively. Additionally, the numbers are still lower than previous years, showing that some species have yet to recover.

There were some great positives revealed from the transects:

Green Hairstreak and Common Blue have been absent in previous years but have made their presence well known this year. The foodplant of Common Blue, Bird’s-foot-trefoil, has seen a massive increase in abundance at Pleck Meadow thanks to the management there, which may be the reason for the observation of male and female individuals.
It has also been the best year for white butterflies (Large White, Small White, Green-veined White, and Orange-tip,) something which has been reflected in the Big Butterfly Count 2025’s data. All four of these species feed on plants in the Brassicaceae family which contains a variety of crop and wildflower species such as Cabbage, Broccoli, Radish, cresses, Garlic Mustard, Cuckoo Flower, and many more. Their success this year could be related to favourable conditions for their foodplants. This could be seen at the Coppice as there was an abundance of Cuckoo Flower and Wild Radish.
Small Skipper, Ringlet, Meadow Brown, and Small Heath have all shown an increase after a 3-year decline.
Lastly, Small Tortoiseshell have made a great recovery after a complete absence from the transects and having its worst Big Butterfly Count ever last year. Miraculously, they’ve had their best year on record at the Coppice. Decline in the species has been linked to a parasitic fly from mainland Europe arriving in the 90's.

Small Skipper - July

Large Skipper - June

Large White - August

Small White - August

Green-veined White - July

Orange-tip (male) - April

Green Hairstreak - April

Small Copper - July

Common Blue (male) - August

Common Blue (female) - August

Holly Blue - August

Red Admiral - September

Painted Lady - August

Small Tortoiseshell - June

Peacock - July

Comma - September

Speckled Wood - April

Gatekeeper - July

Meadow Brown - June

Ringlet - June

Small Heath - July

We will continue to protect, create, and restore habitat for pollinators and all wildlife across Hyndburn's green spaces in our Hyndburn's Nature Reserves project. PROSPECTS has been carrying out conservation work at Peel Park & the Coppice LNR for past 3 years during the HEAL, Peel Park Pollinators, and Hyndburn's Nature Reserves projects. See below for some of the work we have been doing to benefit butterflies:

Want to help? Please contact robert.gabryszak@prospectsfoundation.org.uk if you would like to involved with habitat restoration or survey work. Alternatively, call 01254 230348 or pop into our shop at 54 Broadway, Accrington, BB5 1EW.

If you would like more information on the survey data then please contact Robert.