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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Patrick Barkham

Midsummer butterflies spotted early in Britain after sunny spring

A chequered skipper butterfly resting on a flower
The chequered skipper butterfly was spotted in Scotland in April rather than mid-May. Photograph: Nature Photographers Ltd/Alamy

Midsummer butterflies are on the wing in early May after a sunny spring prompted one of the most advanced seasons for Britain’s Lepidoptera on record.

The Lulworth skipper – usually found in June and July – is flying at Lulworth Cove in Dorset, the chequered skipper emerged in April rather than mid-May in Scotland and the first swallowtail, which is most common in mid-June, was spotted in Norfolk on 1 May.

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