www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Hi all,

I came across a reference to a possible re-introduction of the Mazarine Blue in a document titled "The Unesco Strategy for Action on Climate Change"

http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0016/0 ... 62715e.pdf

At the bottom in small print it says:

Researchers are using bioclimatic models for the Mazarine Blue butterfly, Polymommatus semiargus, to determine what locations within its historic British range will be suitable for its reintroduction.

Has anyone heard any more about this? Personally I can't see a problem with re-introducing a species that used to occur in Britain naturally.

Cheers
John

How exciting ! I wonder if like Clouded Yellow in its 'boom years' it would do well here with all the clover that is grown agriculturally.

This was an exercise in modelling carried out at the University of York a couple of years back to assess the suitability of the climate here for Mazarine Blue (and also Black-veined White). As far as I am aware there are no plans to take the matter further for either species.

https://pure.york.ac.uk/portal/en/publi ... ee83).html

(can't get the link to work properly - you will need to add the ).html manually to get it to appear)

John W wrote:
Has anyone heard any more about this? Personally I can't see a problem with re-introducing a species that used to occur in Britain naturally.

I hadn't heard about this, but I'm sceptical as to whether such a re-introduction could work. Unlike the Large Blue, which had only been absent from Britain for a couple of decades, Mazarine Blues have been extinct for the better part of two centuries!!

That said, if sufficient numbers of experts deemed it appropriate to conduct such a re-introduction, then I certainly wouldn't object.

I'd prefer it if Chequered Skippers were reintroduced to England rather than Mazarine Blues to be honest. After all, if this insect can thrive in the wet and gloomy west of Scotland then surely it can't be impossible for it to return to its former haunts in the east Midlands?

I am definately in favour,if the research has been done and adequete habitat exists and can be maintained on a large enough scale to sustain a colony or,better still,a small network of colonies. And we need to know why the origional populations died out in the first place-does anyone know?

I certainly don't have a problem with it, any introduction of an 'extinct' UK butterfly species sounds like a good idea to me! Providing proper research is done onto the probability of a re-introduction and proposed sites.
I'd like to see the Black-veined White, Large Copper and Large Tortoiseshell re-introduced but I agree that It'd be great to see species such as the Chequered Skipper back in old sites.