Collard Hill in 2020

Welcome to the first blog entry of 2020, which brings with it some changes to the norm.
No reader will have failed to notice the fact that this spring has been exceptional. The arrival and subsequent impacts of coronavirus has meant that everyone, National Trust included, has been locked down and limited in our responses to developing situations. As such, we have been unable to recruit a dedicated large blue butterfly volunteer this year, mainly due to the uncertainty around how the situation would develop.

This is not, however, the end of the story, as two locals from Compton Dundon for whom Collard Hill is a local walking patch have offered to check up on our large blues for us during these uncertain times. This is fantastic news, as having no data this year would represent a significant dip in a very long term data set. Records this year will be particularly pertinent, as we have had several severe weather events in the lead up to the flight season which it will be interesting to see the butterfly’s response to.

An incredibly wet winter, followed by an incredibly dry spring growing season, has meant that the sward of Collard Hill is still very short, something that may prove beneficial for the ants, but may hinder the butterfly in its reproduction. If the thyme flowers out of synchronisation with the butterfly flight season, this will have longer term repercussions on the local population. As many of these severe weather events have, at some level, been linked to climate change, this year’s data could be very important indeed.

The fragility of the site also means we are taking a different approach to the site this year. As we are still observing social distancing, so visitor congregation is not at present something we are looking to encourage, and as the plants are potentially going to be small, few and fragile, we are recommending that visitors think very carefully about coming to Collard Hill in pursuit of the butterfly this year. The site is open as usual, but there will be no waymarked routes, and there will be no active promotion of the site this year. As such, if you do choose to visit Collard Hill to search for the large blue, please do so with increased consideration for the condition of the habitat and observing government guidance on social distancing. Of course this is disappointing, but we need to ensure that the safety of our visitors and our rare species are at the heart of what we do.

Thankyou for your collaboration in this, and here’s hoping for a good season for this unusual, fascinating butterfly.