More than 70pc of butterfly species in the UK declining

The report by wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) revealed that 72 per cent of species had suffered declines in populations in the past 10 years.

And more than half of UK butterflies have seen their distribution across the country reduced, the study showed.

The results, based on two long-running surveys, indicate that pledges to halt declines in wildlife by 2010 had not been met, Butterfly Conservation said.

There were some success stories documented in the research, which analysed the distribution and numbers of 59 species of butterflies which regularly breed in the UK.

They include the large blue – reintroduced in the 1980s after becoming extinct in this country – which is now expanding its population and range, and the heath fritillary, which has been brought back from the brink of extinction.

But Butterfly Conservation warned that populations of species considered to be widespread and common fell by almost a quarter (24 per cent) in the 10-year period, indicating problems in the wider countryside.

And some species, such as the high brown fritillary and the Duke of Burgundy butterflies, are now at risk of becoming extinct in the UK.

The common garden species the small tortoiseshell has also seen a decline in numbers of 64 per cent in the past decade.

Meanwhile, the peacock, comma, speckled wood and ringlet butterflies have continued to spread north rapidly in response to climate change, Butterfly Conservation said.

The charity warns that the deterioration of habitats in the countryside is the main cause of the declines seen in butterflies, while successes in turning around the fortunes of some of the rarest species have been the result of intense conservation efforts.