Hampshire and Isle of Wight Butterfly and Moth Society
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Butterfly and Moth Society
| Family: | Hesperiidae |
| Subfamily: | Hesperiinae |
| Genus: | Thymelicus |
| Species: | sylvestris |
| Authority: | (Poda, 1761) |
This golden skipper is often found basking on vegetation, or making short buzzing flights among tall grass stems. Despite its name, 4 skipper species found in the British Isles are the same size or smaller than the Small Skipper. The male is distinguished from the female by the sex brand on its forewings, which is a slightly curved line of specialised scent scales. This butterfly is widespread on the British mainland, south of a line running between Westmorland in the west and North Northumberland in the east. It is absent from Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. This species lives in discrete colonies of both small and large populations.
| #Individuals | #Tetrads | 2023 | 2024 | Abundance Trend | 2023 | 2024 | Distribution Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8110 | 3882 | -52% | 342 | 275 | -19% |
| #Records | #Individuals | Earliest Record | Latest Record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Records | 50,269 | 248,708 | 16/05/2011 | 19/09/1991 |
| 2024 | 1,109 | 3,882 | 12/6/2024 | 15/9/2024 |
| Location | Date | Quantity | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earliest Record | Broughton Down | 12/6/2024 | 1 |
| Latest Record | Sandy Point | 15/9/2024 | 1 |
| Highest Count | Oxenbourne Down | 21/7/2024 | 100 |
One of the issues with 'raw' trend data is that there is inherent bias based on the number of recorders. For example, the number of individuals and populated tetrads recorded are likely to increase if there is an increase in the number of recorders. In order to remove this bias, the normalised trends use data that has been recalculated using the average number of recorders over the trend period. This normalisation gives a much better picture of the true trends.
Average #Recorders: 220.4
Average #Recorders: 220.4