When we talk about Guernsey butterflies, we mean butterfly species that are seen elsewhere in the UK and Europe, but that breed and over-winter in Guernsey as egg, larva, pupa or adult. As well as food, habitat is very important for these butterflies – a plant to lay their eggs on, a plant to shelter in and a plant for their larvae to eat.

We also see butterflies that migrate here in the summer, such as the Clouded Yellow. They are never able to establish here sadly – in distant times they would come over in huge numbers apparently, sometimes bringing with them Pale Clouded Yellows, and even Marbled Whites. But modern farming methods and pesticides mean that kind of hasn’t occurred in my lifetime, indeed the last major irruption coincided with the end of WWII.

If the migrant butterflies arrive in midsummer they can breed on certain plants and a second generation can then be much more numerous, but that is also very rare.

So, what can be seen here in Guernsey beside our 19 residents?

In order of rarity, commonest first ( This isn’t a definitive list and we are working with the Guernsey Biological Records centre on a wide list of all the butterflies that visit Guernsey and are hoping to release this in 2022.)