Wildlife conservationists and firefighters are joining forces to launch an education campaign for young people and the local community after a fire destroyed the habitat of a threatened butterfly.
The blaze, which was started in an act of vandalism, devastated an area of wildflower-rich grassland at Stonehaven near Aberdeen. The habitat was a rare breeding ground for the Northern Brown Argus (Aricia artaxerxes).
Caitlin McLeod, Conservation Officer for national charity Buglife, was working with Butterfly Conservation to preserve the habitat as part of the National Lottery Heritage Fund-backed Species on the Edge programme, and said she was deeply saddened by the incident. She has now pledged to work with local firefighters to educate young people in the area about the dangers of fire and the importance of protecting wildlife.
Caitlin shared: “The Northern Brown Argus is already under threat, with habitat loss being a significant factor in their declines. Incidents like the fire at Stonehaven are particularly devastating – the colony consists of only caterpillars at this time of year so it would be hard for them to escape. We are in the middle of a biodiversity crisis, we should be doing everything we can to protect nature, not harm it.
“We are grateful to the Stonehaven Fire and Rescue Service for attending the incident and putting out the fire and we are looking forward to working with them to educate young people about how dangerous fire can be and how precious our local wildlife is.”
The fire broke out on cliffs near Cowie on the evening of Thursday, 3 October. It resulted in the loss of approximately 90% of the flower-rich habitat where a colony of Northern Brown Argus was known to exist.
This butterfly used to be much more widespread, but its UK distribution plummeted 56 per cent between 1990 and 2018. This is largely because Northern Brown Argus caterpillars only eat one type of plant – the Common Rock Rose – and this is usually only found in species-rich grassland, of which about 90% has been lost in the UK in the past century.
Losing such a large proportion of the habitat at Stonehaven has sparked worries that the local population has been critically impacted, if not entirely wiped out.
This area is not only part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), meaning it is one of our most important sites for nature, but it is also home to a wide range of other invertebrate species. This means that hundreds, if not thousands of other invertebrates – each having important roles in the local ecosystem – will have been lost.
Firefighters were quick to respond and managed to control the blaze, but the damage to the habitat is severe and it will take time to fully understand any long-term impacts. The fire highlights the fragility of such habitats and the broader issue of intentional and unintentional human impacts on the natural world.
Butterfly Conservation Scotland Conservation Manager David Hill said: “Grass fires can have hugely damaging effects on wildlife and this one has caused real harm to the survival prospects of the Northern Brown Argus along this coastline. This comes at a time when we are just starting to make a difference through the Species on the Edge programme by improving habitat and raising awareness of the butterfly’s plight. We look forward to working with local communities to continue this vital work.”
Matthew Crabb, Support Watch Commander, from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “Buglife, Butterfly Conservation and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service urge the public to acknowledge the importance of protecting these ecosystems from harm and to remain vigilant against similar acts that could threaten wildlife and natural spaces in the future.”
Main Image Credit: Fire damage at Stonehaven © Matthew Crabb
