You may have seen reports that 2025 is a good year for butterflies. I have certainly noticed more of them in my garden. However, butterfly and moth numbers are in overall decline, and one factor is loss of habitat. The Butterfly Conservation Trust has researched the positive impact that even a single tree has on butterfly numbers, so spaces like the orchard are more important than ever.

One of our volunteers has recently recorded these species as making use of the various habitats in the orchard:
ringlet,
small copper
gatekeeper
comma
meadow brown 
small skipper
marbled white
common blue
(all above are butterflies )

excitingly, a very speedy hummingbird hawk moth
Nemophora metallica (a type of shiny longhorn moth – see Norfolk Moths for more details)
southern hawker dragonfly
common blue damselfly 

If you have taken any snaps of insect wildlife in the orchard, please share them on Facebook or email them and we will put them on the website. It is so exciting to see the changes through the seasons. Thanks to Juliette for these gorgeous photos.