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Post by marsdenda on Feb 28, 2014 1:25:27 GMT -8
Is butterfly collecting forbidden in the UK National Park system?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 28, 2014 2:58:44 GMT -8
If owned by the national trust or forestry commission then yes, I got caught many years ago but managed to lie my way out of a £1000 fine, just not worth it.
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Post by nomad on Feb 28, 2014 4:07:49 GMT -8
In the U.K, you are not allowed to collect in National Parks, National Nature reserves or any other Nature reserves. Collecting is also forbidden in woodlands manged by the Forestry Commission and on all National Trust land. Also express permission is required on all private lands. This leaves your garden where you may collect.  As dunc has mentioned, it is not worth trying to collect in any of the mentioned places - you may get caught and face quite a large fine or worse. Last September and October, there was a spate of the very rare immigrant Lampides boeticus in Sussex and Kent on public-land on the coast. The location was posted and butterfly photographers flocked to the hotspots. On several occasions collectors were observed and although the blue is not a protected species, those with nets beat a hasty retreat, as those with the cameras wanted their mugshots for future reference. Because some photographers had traveled hundreds of miles and did not get their images, collectors were blamed for removing butterflies. However, because they are a short lived butterfly and were breeding, other pristine individuals soon turned up to keep the photographers happy. Collecting in Britain today is one big headache and although I do collect butterflies, in the U.K I now only take a camera and join the throng. Perhaps I could even save a collector from being lynched by a angry mob.  |
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Post by timmsyrj on Feb 28, 2014 7:47:27 GMT -8
You will find it very frustrating collecting anywhere in the uk nowadays, I gave up years ago having reared a few of all species. You can however roam around the countryside with a strimmer and clear all the vegetation along the roadside to make the world a neat and tidy place, I've noticed a very large drop in orange tips around my area, mainly down to the verges being mown when the food plant is in flower and covered in eggs, when they hatch there are no developing seed pods only dead dry leaves and with no seeds a big reduction in the food plant the following year as it's a biennial plant. The good old highways agency tossers doing there bit for the environment.
Rich
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Post by Deleted on Feb 28, 2014 9:16:31 GMT -8
There are still places to collect without seeing any of the enviro hypocrites or trespassing but they are getting rare, there are places locally to me where I can guarantee not to see a person and if I do I take my son which dissuades anybody saying anything, the Isle of Wight still has great places to collect and Portland is a butterfly paradise where you can go without being disturbed all week if you know the island well. On the Isle of Wight you can get a paphia, l Camilla, a aglaija, l bellargus and corridon, c minimus, a agestis all in good numbers and on Portland of course we have p argus.
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Post by nomad on Feb 28, 2014 23:22:51 GMT -8
I agree with Rich here, apart from a few protected roadside verges, which usually protect rare flora, the local councils always seem to cut the roadside verges and destroy much needed butterfly and moth foodplants. Another major problem, especially where there are rare hairstreaks are the cutting of hedges by farmers and councils, they have to have a tidy hedge, but this must destroy the eggs, larvae of a number of important lepidoptera species. You may get permission to build on swathes of green land, but in this country you are seen as a outlaw and villain if you have a net.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 1, 2014 6:42:00 GMT -8
Yes being made a scapegoat is the easy thing to do for those who destroy the countryside without a second thought, making money of course is at the bottom of most of it and tidying up the countryside is done in the same thoughtless manner by those in authority who are clueless as to the destruction of food plants etc, they out to get out of the city a little bit more so they can see what vegetation looks like, gone are the days in the 1970's when at least 6 of my neighbours were working the same disused railway line as I was, great memories but if you box clever there are still areas to collect you just have to know where they are.
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As dunc has mentioned, it is not worth trying to collect in any of the mentioned places - you may get caught and face quite a large fine or worse. Last September and October, there was a spate of the very rare immigrant Lampides boeticus in Sussex and Kent on public-land on the coast. The location was posted and butterfly photographers flocked to the hotspots. On several occasions collectors were observed and although the blue is not a protected species, those with nets beat a hasty retreat, as those with the cameras wanted their mugshots for future reference. Because some photographers had traveled hundreds of miles and did not get their images, collectors were blamed for removing butterflies. However, because they are a short lived butterfly and were breeding, other pristine individuals soon turned up to keep the photographers happy. Collecting in Britain today is one big headache and although I do collect butterflies, in the U.K I now only take a camera and join the throng. Perhaps I could even save a collector from being lynched by a angry mob. 
