Butterfly survey techniques (1 Viewer)

Just wondering if someone can summarise/point me in the right direction. Basically got two c.3 acre fields to survey - pasture + the hedgerows.

Heard of butterfly transects, but what does that entail? What technique should I use to reach an approximate population density for the site (I could work out my own methods, but would be nice to do it in a manner that others have used before/be comparable).

Cheers, Dan

If you look up Pollard methodology for butterflies that should give you info you need.

I'd never heard of the Pollard method before.

http://www.ukbms.org/Methods.aspx

Cheers, kind of adapted the technique directly, presumably as others would do and a one off at least.

Did a reasonably intense walk around the perimeters and a sample cross-section of the fields concerned. Based on butterflies that were observed on or flying from 5m either side of my route, recorded as follows -

22nd July.

Field 1 (3.5 acres) late afternoon sunny, strong breeze

Trackway (overgrown thistles and bramble really!) - 100m
Comma 5
Meadow Brown 12
Peacock 2
Red Admiral 1
Gatekeeper 7
Large White 1
Ringlet 9
Small Skipper 5

Perimeter (Rank grass/Blackthorn/Bracken/Bramble/Thistle) 650m

Comma 2
Meadow Brown 15
Gatekeeper 2
Ringlet 19
Small Skipper 11
Large Skipper 3
Small Tortoiseshell 4
Painted Lady 1

Open field (Rank grass; cocksfoot etc) 500m

Meadow Brown 12
Peacock 1
Ringlet 5
Small Skipper 1
Small Tortoiseshell 1


Field 2 (2.5 acres) Intermittent cloud and sun

Perimeter and centre - mix as above with willow, cultivated areas etc 1000m total

Gatekeeper 5
Meadow Brown 12
Comma 4
Small Tortoiseshell 2
Ringlet 7
Peacock 2
Red Admiral 3
Small Skipper 4


The above indicates what I recorded - and would allow a reasonable density calculation if so desired. Nothing rare or unusual, but certainly a higher number of butterflies than normally encounter when out and about.