The Isle of Wight is home to just over 70% of the UK’s wide variety of butterfly species.
On the south coast of the UK mainland, the Isle of Wight is an ideal place to spot butterflies due to the Island being slightly warmer.
43 of the UK’s 61 butterfly species are resident on the Island thanks to some of its great habitats.
Ford Farm House Bed and Breakfast has seen a rise in guests who have an interest in Isle of Wight butterflies, with many butterflies being spotted in our very own garden!
Bonchurch is home to some of the more unique species.
There is a 5-mile paradise walk on the Isle of Wight butterfly trail over Compton Down. You can see the walk here.
A smaller walk, but just as glamorous is a 4-mile stroll through the Newtown Nature Reserve. Here you can take in everything from salt marshes to wildflower meadows. You can view this walk here.
A rare butterfly, the Glanville fritillary, can be found purely on the Isle of Wight.
The delicate, orange and brown chequered butterflies can be spotted on coastal grasslands or cliff tops and south-facing chalk downland.
Lady Eleanor Glanville first found the butterfly in England in the 1690s, subsequently, named after her. Find out more about this butterfly here.
Now, where to see the Isle of Wight Butterflies?
According to the National Trust website, the following are great locations for spotting these creatures.
- One of the best areas for the Glanville fritillary is on the crumbling coastal cliffs of Compton Bay below the Mottistone Estate.
- Tennyson, Afton, Compton, Mottistone, Bonchurch and Culver Downs, with their chalk soils, are rich in blue butterflies in summer. The chalkhill blue is the most numerous but you can also see the common, Adonis and small blue species too.
- Borthwood and Walters Copse are great places to spot woodland species such as the white admiral, silver-washed fritillary, speckled wood and purple hairstreak.
- The flower-rich meadows around Newtown National Nature Reserve are host to a large number of butterflies throughout spring and summer such as marbled white and meadow brown.