Changing fortunes of Tentsmuir butterflies revealed by volunteers

Six new species have been recorded at Tentsmuir since volunteers first started surveying on the reserve in 1978.

The small pearl-bordered fritillary arrived in 1985, orange-tip and peacock in 1994, comma in 2008, and speckled wood and wall have been recorded in recent years. Holly blue butterflies were also spotted at Morton Lochs for the first time in 2023 and again this year.

For other species, the picture has been one of decline. Over the first 19 years of surveying at Tentsmuir, the average annual count for grayling was 322 on the reserve alone. Last year only 37 graylings were recorded in the whole of Fife, illustrating the sad decline of this species in the area.

The Tentsmuir picture reflects the findings of new research by NatureScot that ten butterfly species have increased significantly in Scotland in the past 40 years, with climate change thought to be pushing them northwards.

Gillian Fyfe and Daphne Macfarlane Smith have been surveying butterflies at Tentsmuir for 21 years, alongside other volunteers who cover the northern section of the reserve and Morton Lochs.

Gillian said: “I first volunteered to walk the Tentsmuir south transect with Daphne in 2004 and we have been walking it ever since. I remember being astonished at the time to be told that former reserve manager Pete Kinnear had done 19 years walking the Tentsmuir and Morton Lochs transects. That seemed like a mind-blowingly long time and I would not have believed then that I would still be doing it after 21 years!

“We have seen some big changes in that time – both to the butterflies and the landscape. The most dramatic was the loss of part of the south transect that was washed away by coastal erosion. We had to retreat inland and find a more secure route after that. Further coastal change means that parts of the old route are now being built back up again.”

Daphne added: “Like Gillian, I find it hard to believe we have managed to keep doing the transect for 21 years with very few weeks missed, though mostly that has been due to conditions. I have thoroughly enjoyed my visits - no two are ever the same - and I'm only sad that the numbers of some butterflies have gone down so much in recent years.”

Marijke Leith, NatureScot’s reserve manager at Tentsmuir, said: “Monitoring species is a really important part of the work here at Tentsmuir. The more we know about what is happening and where, the better we are able to target conservation measures to try to help those species that are struggling.

“We simply couldn’t do not do this without the tireless effort of volunteers like Gillian and Daphne. They have contributed so much to our recording over the past few decades, and we can’t thank them enough for their contribution to the reserve and to our wider knowledge of how our butterflies are faring.”

Tom Prescott, Butterfly Conservation Head of Conservation for Scotland, said: “This lovely story highlights the valuable information that dedicated volunteers can gather through long-term recording schemes; how butterflies are ideal indicator species and how our butterfly assemblage north of the border is changing as new species arrive. 

“The data also clearly identifies species doing less well, in this case the grayling, which as a result of these declines is now a priority species in need of conservation action. As a result, we have been undertaking volunteer work parties on the National Nature Reserve at Tentsmuir and adjacent land owned by Forestry and Land Scotland to improve the habitat for this threatened butterfly.”

ENDS