‘It’s a warning’: UK nature chief sounds alarm over ecosystem collapse as butterfly numbers halve

Juniper says the UK needs a ‘mosaic’ of different protected habitats rather than more national parks. Photograph: Jason Bye

The collapse in British butterfly populations is a “warning from nature” about the resilience of the UK’s ecosystems, says England’s nature chief, raising concerns about threats to national food security as the planet continues to heat.

Tony Juniper, the chair of Natural England, says new data showing a sharp fall in butterfly populations this summer was probably the consequence of habitat loss and the use of pesticides, making the insects less resilient to extreme weather fluctuations: the scorching heat and wetter weather driven by global heating.