National Trust records ‘alarming’ drop in insects and seabirds at its sites

The number of Arctic terns, an endangered species, was down 51% on the Farne Islands. Photograph: Paul Souders/Getty Images

There have been alarming declines this year in some insect species including bees, butterflies, moths and wasps, while many seabirds have also been “hammered” by unstable weather patterns caused by the climate emergency, a conservation charity has said.

In its annual report on the impact of the weather on flora and fauna, the National Trust highlights that numbers of bees and butterflies have “crashed” in some areas of the UK in 2024.