A PROJECT to create a wildflower haven for butterflies in south Warwickshire after a devastating landslip is really taking off.
Mike Slater, who volunteers for national charity Butterfly Conservation, has reported several rare butterflies at a new meadow area in Harbury.
The landslip near the railway tunnel in 2015 caused major damage and disruption which was especially worrying because much of the area is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
The large mass of bare clay it exposed was so barren that locals nicknamed it the ‘moonscape’.
Since then, Mike and other members of Butterfly Conservation Warwickshire branch have worked with
Network Rail to restore the site and make it more resistant to landslips by grazing sheep on it. This helps to create a dense sward of grass and wildflowers that bind the soil together, and is also perfect habitat for butterflies.
Now the team has said that the project is working so well, they want to expand it to new areas.
Mike, who is chairman of Butterfly Conservation’s Warwickshire Branch, said: “Seeing the site this spring I have been absolutely amazed. Last year it was coarse grassland full of ragwort and buddleia.
This year, following grazing, it’s full of bird’s-foot trefoil and knapweed.
“In the past few weeks we have seen Dingy Skipper and Small Heath on the new meadow area – it’s absolutely fantastic. Last year it was totally unsuitable for those species.”
The SSSI is also home to numerous other butterflies including Small Blue, Green Hairstreak and Dark Green Fritillary.
Now Mike and the branch are aiming to work with Network Rail to expand that success to the surrounding area.
Firstly, on a second area of bare clay exposed by the landslip west of the tunnel, Mike is in talks with Network Rail to bring in six new lorry loads of local clay-rich soil, create eight south-facing ‘butterfly banks’ and then scatter wildflower seeds over the lot. He is also hoping to graze sheep on that area.
This would double the area of wildflower meadow in the SSSI.
The branch also manages a meadow for butterflies just east of the landslip area for a local farmer, and has agreed a plan to spread some of the benefits from that site. This autumn they will mow the meadow, then immediately take the ‘green hay’ cuttings to the Churchlands meadow.
This rapid transplant offers valuable hidden benefits because, as well as transferring wildflower seeds, it also brings microbes, fungi and other living components of the meadow.
The branch has even planted disease-resistant elm trees in part of the SSSI in a bid to lure White-letter Hairstreak butterflies to the site.
