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The UK Butterflies 2023 Photography Competition is now open for entries! In keeping with the online nature of the UK Butterflies website, the competition itself will be conducted entirely over the web. The competition closes on November 30th and the winning photos will be announced in early December. The competition is supported by Greenwings , the UK Butterflies sponsor, and the winner will receive a signed copy of British & Irish Butterfly Rarities by Pete Eeles. Click here for information on how to enter.

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The man who spent a year spotting all 59 of Britain’s native butterflies

Once oblivious to butterflies, Robin Page became so entranced by their delicate beauty that he embarked on a year-long safari to spot every native British butterfly — as well as some foreign visitors.

When did I become obsessed with butterflies? The answer is simple — I don’t know.

As a child, I quickly became aware of them. There were white ones, ‘cabbage whites’, that father blamed for eating our cabbages as caterpillars; brightly coloured ones in the spring that fluttered against the window panes, trying to get out of the house; and others in the autumn that tried to get in. However, at that stage, that is as far as me and butterflies went.

Purple Emperor Butterfly (Apatura iris) male on English Oak (Quercus robur) leaf basking with wings open.

Then, years later, I met an amazing countryman — well, a Londoner who had moved into the countryside as a child during the Second World War as an evacuee — called Gordon Beningfield.

By the time our paths crossed, he had metamorphosed from an urban child at risk from war into a quite extraordinary watercolour artist and conservationist; what a transformation. He was also a man who suffered with dyslexia, yet could hold an audience enthralled with words — as long as they were spoken, as opposed to written words, because ‘spellin’ was beyond ’im’.

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Marsh Fritillary (Euphydryas aurinia)

With a paintbrush in his hand, he turned butterfly illustration into art, butterflies into conservation allies and his artwork into a countryside crusade.

His pictures told the story of changing Britain, warning against the double meaning of the word ‘progress’: a boggy place drained, wildflowers sprayed, an orchard uprooted and a new town — a planner’s dream, a politician’s boast, an environmental insult, a butterfly disaster and a countryside nightmare.

This green hairstreak butterfly.

My life changed still further one April day when I was standing in a bog with Gordon, close to his home in Hertfordshire. The cuckoo was calling and the cuckoo flower was flowering. ‘There’s an orange tip,’ he said, pointing to a beautiful butterfly with orange tips to its wings. ‘Look here,’ he continued, ‘they lay their eggs on cuckoo flowers.’

The UK Pieridae Butterfly Family.

Within a minute, he had found an egg and butterflies had become more than wings — they became wings, flowers, plants and seasons. The wings changed, too. I did not simply see the odd whites and yellows and peacock eyes. I saw blues and browns, large and small, fast wings, slow wings and wings that opened to absorb the sun.

They all linked sun, air, water, flowers and people — and yes, they were ‘indicator species’, indicating health or hindrance in the countryside and the atmosphere.

“How can butterflies, with their beautiful, fragile wings, fly through the sharpest and deadliest thorns in natural Britain, navigating with ease and certainty?”

Astonishingly, although Gordon was dyslexic, he became an expert on the books of Thomas Hardy (how did that happen? I have no idea), introducing me to Dorset and the world of Hardy, as well as butterflies. He died in 1998 and I still miss him.

Yet, he was something else, too — he made the seasonal flutter of butterflies and their beauty  fun. Fun is so important in conservation and it’s such a pity that so many modern conservationists fill us with gloom and doom, replacing smiles with scowls and twisted vowels. Gordon was a serious conservationist, but he was also a man of smiles and laughter.

Ringlet butterfly (Aphantopus hyperantus)

In turn, butterflies have become dazzling creatures of smiles and laughter for Mrs Page (Lulu) and me. So much so that, every year, which one of us sees what, when, where and ‘first’ becomes important — even competitive. In addition, our love of butterflies has followed us to Africa.

When some are searching for lions and cheetahs, I will often be looking at the colour, light and movement of butterflies — fragile and delicate in a hard, hostile world. When at waterholes ‘on safari’, I have spotted silken wings, whereas others have seen nothing but monkeys having a scratch.

Small pearl-bordered fritillary

This got me thinking, what about undertaking a butterfly safari here in Britain? A trip around the UK in the hope of seeing all British butterfly species in a single year, raising money for conservation at the same time. The first problem was establishing how many varieties we have in Britain — even the experts don’t agree. I decided to aim for 58 or 59, with a couple of vagrants (such as the monarch that sometimes gets blown in from America in the autumn and the Camberwell beauty, an occasional visitor from Europe that was first seen in 1748) thrown in for good measure.

In 2002, I embarked on my butterfly safari. In theory, it took the entire year, covering more than 11,000 miles and raising £10,000; but, in reality, it’s continuing now and I still search for the monarch and the Camberwell beauty every year. The venture exhausted me.

Marbled White – Melanargia galathea

Butterflies are so frustrating, weather driven, sun inspired, unpredictable and first described by an astonishing assortment of British eccentrics. For example, one of the earliest spring fliers is the holly blue — a butterfly of deep, striking blue, that lays its eggs on holly as a food plant for its caterpillars, switching to ivy for its second brood, so shouldn’t it be called ‘the holly and the ivy blue’?

“You might wonder which was the most attractive. It would be simple, and partially true, to say the swallowtails on the Norfolk Broads. My number one, however, would be the small and astoundingly beautiful small copper”

What about the black hairstreak and the brown hairstreak? The caterpillars of both feed on the buds and leaves of the blackthorn, a tree or shrub that’s now scarce because of scrub clearance. How can butterflies, with their beautiful, fragile wings, fly through the sharpest and deadliest thorns in natural Britain, navigating with ease and certainty? Two of our most astounding butterflies — the red admiral and the painted lady — are migrants.

Indeed, Lulu and I have been fortunate to witness hundreds of painted ladies, which hail from the Meditterranean, hitting land over a rough sea on the Isles of Scilly, in a sight that was astonishing, fluttering and staggering. There were plenty of oddities, too. Why did the graylings among the Norfolk sand dunes insist on landing on my feet, where my overheating sports shoes seemed to hold much appeal?

Painted Lady Butterfly

Out of the 59 species seen and verified thanks to a variety of helpful companions, you might wonder which was the most attractive. It would be simple, and partially true, to say the swallowtails on the Norfolk Broads. My number one, however, would be the small and astoundingly beautiful small copper, closely followed by one of Gordon’s favourites, the marbled white — a lover of hay meadows, sunlight and waving grass — which usually flies from mid June until the end of July.

On my small farm in Cambridgeshire, the marbled whites arrived in a cardboard box, courtesy of Trevor, a BT van driver. He had noted that scrub was invading land owned by British Rail — or whatever it happened to be called at the time — which was threatening an established colony of marbled whites. Consequently, like the good conservationist he is, Trevor collected the butterflies and chrysalises and released them in my grass fields. From there, they have spread over the whole farm and parish — Trevor, what a conservation star you are.

Small copper butterfly, Lycaena phlaeas, pollinating a thistle

This leads me to another butterfly buff who must be mentioned, the late Christopher Booker. Forget his excellent political journalism — and his loathing for ‘group think’ — his great love and passion was butterflies. Lulu and I once enjoyed an unforgettable day with him, watching the introduced large blues at the National Trust’s Collard Hill in Somerset.

Some enthusiasts have put butterflies on an ornithological scale of importance and beauty. Hence, for me, the small copper equals the skylark, the meadow brown the wood pigeon and the large blue the osprey. These comparisons are nonsense, really, but they’re fun and I think Gordon would have approved.

Which species, however, could match the incredible purple emperor? Strangely enough, when I was lucky enough to see seven magnificent purple emperors in the air at once — close to the home of that late butterfly legend Dame Miriam Rothschild — two of them were, once again, attracted by the state of my feet. In my lexicon of favoured butterflies and birds, the purple emperor must equal the cuckoo, which I’m pleased to say I have heard several times this year.

Apatura ilia – Lesser Purple Emperor butterfly.

When the 2002 safari was done and dusted, I wrote a book called The Great British Butterfly Safari. Extremely politically incorrect, it was described by the late Prof David Newland, another butterfly obsessive, as ‘an enjoyable read — sure to raise a smile’.

Finally, I have a confession. Three years ago, I saw pristine monarch butterflies flying — not in England, sadly, but on St Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. The only problem was that I left my Tilley hat on a bench there, so, if any reader is lucky enough to go and finds my hat, please let me know. Also, do have a St Helena coffee, made from ancient Arabian coffee beans — it’s sensational.

Spotting all 59 of Britain’s native butterflies: How Robin ticked off his butterfly calendar

• January 7 Small tortoiseshell at Bird’s Farm, my small Cambridgeshire farm
• March 16 Brimstone, farmhouse garden
• March 27 Peacock, farmyard
• March 30 Speckled wood, farmhouse garden
• April 3 Large white and comma, Bird’s Farm vegetable garden
• April 17 Small white, Bird’s Farm vegetable garden
• April 23 Orange tip, grass meadow at Bird’s Farm
• April 25 Small copper, in the Bullock’s End meadow, and a holly blue, flitting around hedgerow ivy, followed by a common blue in a grass meadow at Bird’s Farm
• May 9 Green-veined white, green hairstreak, pearl-bordered fritillary, grizzled skipper, wall, dingy skipper and red admiral in a wide valley near Welshpool, in Powys, Wales
• May 17 Duke of Burgundy fritillary on the edge of Whipsnade Zoo, near Dunstable in Bedfordshire

A rare Duke of Burgundy Butterfly, Hamearis lucina, perching on a plant.

• May 24 Chequered skipper near Fort William in the Scottish Highlands
• May 31 Swallowtail, Hickling Broad, Norfolk
• June 1 Wood white at Salcey Forest, Northamptonshire
• June 2 Brown argus in Telegraph Field, Lark Rise Farm, next to Bird’s Farm
• June 5 Glanville fritillary, small blue and adonis blue, Isle of Wight
• June 9 Small skipper, Bird’s Farm
• June 14 Meadow brown at brook meadows and a small heath at Bullocks End meadow at Bird’s Farm
• June 17 Painted lady and marsh fritillary at Cerne Abbas, Dorset
• June 20 Marbled white, small pearl-bordered fritillary and Essex skipper at Dolebury Warren, Mendip Hills

Common Lime Swallowtail Butterfly resting on the tip of a green leaf with green foliage in background

• June 21 Black hairstreak and large skipper, near Oundle, Northamptonshire
• June 24 Heath fritillary and ringlet, Thrift Wood, Essex
• June 26 Large blue, Collard Hill, Somerset
• July 4 Grayling and silver-studded blue, Minsmere, Suffolk
• July 7 Silver-washed fritillary in a Herefordshire wood
• July 8 Large tortoiseshell, flying out of a cardboard box in Cambridgeshire
• July 12 Dark-green fritillary and high-brown fritillary, near Welshpool in Wales, where old-fashioned farming methods and cutting of bracken for animal bedding exposes violets (food plant of high-brown caterpillars) and account for some 25% of the Welsh high- brown population being there
• July 13 Gatekeeper, farmhouse garden
• July 14 White-letter hairstreak in a small remnant of elm — its food plant — near my home
• July 14 White admiral at Bramp ton Wood, Huntingdonshire
• July 16 Mountain ringlet (also called the small mountain ringlet) Lake District, Cumbria. A survivor from the Ice Age going back 10,000 years and a true Alpine butterfly, together with the Scotch argus, we found it at last, almost at the top of Cold Pike, at an altitude of about 2,150ft. Followed, in the afternoon, by a large heath at Meathrop Moss. We then went on to an old limestone quarry managed by the Cumbria Wildlife Trust for a northern brown argus

Mountain Ringlet Butterfly (Erebia epiphron) perched on a plant with spread wings.

• July 22 Purple hairstreak, Brampton Wood, Huntingdonshire
• July 25 Purple emperor, Fermyn Woods, Northamptonshire
• July 31 Chalkhill blue at Devil’s Dyke on the Cambridgeshire and Suffolk border
• August 2 Clouded yellow and Lulworth skipper, Lulworth Cove, Dorset
• August 13 Silver-spotted skipper and brown hairstreak, Porton Down, Wiltshire
• August 14 Scotch argus, Arnside Knott, Cumbria

Total 59 butterflies

The author’s book, ‘The Great British Butterfly Safari’, is available to buy for £25 — including postage and packaging, together with a complimentary butterfly wall chart — by sending a cheque made payable to Robin Page at Bird’s Farm, 2, Haslingfield Road, Barton, Cambridgeshire, CB23 7AG

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Identify British butterflies

Small Tortoiseshell ©Scott Petrek

Identify UK garden butterflies

What butterfly have i seen in my garden.

The following butterflies are some of the common species spotted in gardens. An overcast day is a particularly good time to see them up close because they won't be as active and stay still for longer.

What colour butterfly have you spotted?

Description:  Deep-red with black marks and blue 'eyespots' (like a peacock’s tail feathers) on the forewings and hindwings. When:  January-December

Peacock ©Rachel Scopes

Peacock ©Terry Whittaker/2020VISION

Red admiral

Description:  Black with broad, red stripes on the hindwings and forewings, and white spots near the tips of the forewings. When:  January-December

Red Admiral ©Guy Edwardes/2020VISION

Small tortoiseshell

Description:  Reddish-orange with black and yellow markings on the forewings and a ring of blue spots around the edge of the wings. When:  January-December Read more

Small tortoiseshell ©Lizzie Wilberforce

Painted lady

Description:  Orange with black tips to the forewings that are adorned with white spots, and black spots on the hindwings and forewings. When:  April-October

Painted lady ©Jim Higham

Painted lady ©Lynne Newton

Small copper

Description:  Bright orange forewings with dark brown spots and a thick, dark brown margin. Dark brown hindwings, banded with orange. When:  April-October

Small Copper ©Bob Coyle

Small Copper ©Ross Hoddinott/2020VISION

Description:  Males are white with bold orange patches on the forewings and light grey wingtips. Females are white with grey-black wingtips. Both have mottled grey-green undersides. When:  April-July

Orange-tip ©Bob Coyle

Clive Nichols

Large white

Description:  White with prominent black tips to the forewings. Females have two black spots and a dash on each forewing. Plain, creamy-yellow underside. When:  April-October

©Zsuzsanna Bird

Large white butterfly taken at Heysham Nature Reserve by Janet Packham

Small white

Description:  White with light grey tips to the forewings. Females have one or two black spots on each forewing. Plain, creamy-yellow underside. When:  April-October

Small white by Vaughn Matthews

Green-veined white

Description:  White with grey-black tips and one or two black spots on the forewings. Thick, grey-green stripes on the underside. When:  April-October

©Jon Hawkins

Green-veined white on road verge wildflowers  ©Paul Hobson

Description:  Large butterfly with a greyish body and characteristically veiny and pointed wings. Males are lemon-yellow, while females are greenish-white with orange spots in the middle of each wing.  When:  January-December

Brimstone ©Jim Higham

Brimstone by Neil Phillips

Meadow brown

Description:  Brown with washed-out orange patches on the forewings. One black eyespot with a small white ‘pupil’ on each forewing. When:  June-September

Meadow Brown ©David Longshaw

Meadow brown butterfly by Vicky Nall

Speckled wood

Description:  Dark brown with creamy yellow spots. The best way to identify the 'brown' butterflies is by looking at the eyespots on their wings. The speckled wood is the only brown butterfly with three small, cream-ringed eyespots on each hindwing and one on each forewing. When:  March - October

Speckled Wood ©Chris Gomersall/2020VISION

© Adam Cormack

Description:  Bright blue with black spots on its silvery underside. Females have black wing edges. When:  April-September

Holly Blue ©Rachel Scopes

Holly Blue ©Amy Lewis

Common blue

Description:  Males have bright blue wings with a brown border and white fringe. Females are brown with a blue 'dusting'. Both have orange spots on their undersides. When:  May-October

© John Bridges

Male Common Blue ©Zsuzsanna Bird

Female Common Blue ©Amy Lewis

Gatekeeper ©David Longshaw

Can't find your butterfly?

Garden tiger moth ©Margaret Holland

Not a butterfly...

Attract butterflies to your garden.

Encourage butterflies to visit your garden by planting nectar-rich flowers and shrubs like ivy, daisies, and primroses – even a few flowers in a windowbox will do the trick!

Jon Hawkins - Surrey Hills Photography

Help butterflies today

As a charity we rely on memberships. They help us look after over 2,300 nature reserves and protect the butterflies that live there.

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‘They symbolise hope’: one man’s incredible photos of all 58 of Britain’s native butterflies

While recovering from cancer, an amateur photographer found solace capturing the insects – including his stunning signature ‘take off’ shots

F ive years ago, at summer’s end, Andrew Fusek Peters was diagnosed with bowel cancer. “I was waiting for surgery, feeling really ill, sitting in my garden. It was amazing weather and there were painted lady butterflies everywhere,” he says. “They were a symbol of fragile life, of hope and defiance, and something appealed to my soul.”

A children’s author and poet who had become a keen amateur photographer, as Peters watched the butterflies and idly wondered if he could capture them in flight. It swiftly became an obsession as he recovered from a successful operation to remove the cancer. In recent summers, he has travelled the length and breadth of Britain to photograph all 58 native species of butterfly, from the ubiquitous small tortoiseshell to the rare and elusive high brown fritillary. Now the fruits of those summers have been published in a beautiful new book.

Britain has relatively few butterfly species compared with mainland Europe and 80% are in decline, mostly because intensive chemical farming has reduced many species to tiny fragments of habitat and small nature reserves. Global heating is benefiting some species but others are too isolated to find suitable new habitat, and gardening habits – paving over gardens and using pesticides – aren’t helping either. Butterflies may not pollinate as many plants as wild bees and hoverflies, but because British butterflies are the best-studied group of insects in the world, they are an extremely useful indicator of the wider declines in flying insects.

Peters’ signature shot – variations of which have now been published in international newspapers and magazines – is a butterfly “take-off”, showing the multiple wing-beats of one butterfly in one frame as it lifts off from a flower.

How does he capture it? Technology helps. A typical digital SLR camera shoots 20 frames a second. He uses a high-speed OM System (formerly Olympus) which shoots 120 frames a second.

A butterfly takes off so quickly it is still impossible to react quickly enough to capture that take-off but if he half-presses the shutter, the camera saves the 70 previous frames before the moment he actually takes the picture. “It’s time travel, so I don’t miss the moment of take-off,” he says. After he’s captured the butterfly taking off, he layers 10 to 15 frames together in Photoshop.

That makes it sound easy, and artificial, but Peters insists it is still a massive challenge. He typically takes between 10,000 and 20,000 shots to get one butterfly take-off sequence in focus. At such high shutter speeds, the depth of field is tiny, and as butterflies do not fly in a straight line they swiftly flutter out of focus. As well as thousands of attempts, it takes patience and fieldcraft to anticipate a butterfly’s likely flight-line – and catch it – in focus.

Peters photographed some of the more common species including holly blues, brimstones, red admirals and small tortoiseshells in his Shropshire garden. “I hope my book inspires people to encourage butterflies into their garden,” he says. “People complain about flowers such as valerian but please don’t remove it, the butterflies love its nectar. And garlic mustard – is it a weed? No, it’s not and you might even get orange tips breeding on it.”

Peters also likes to photograph butterflies in a landscape, celebrating the beauty of their surroundings as well as the insects themselves. His pictures of a Glanville fritillary rising from the sea-pinks beside the chalk cliffs of Compton Bay on the Isle of Wight are particularly glorious. These take-off shots are even more challenging because they require a wide-angle lens, which means he must be less than 2cm from the butterfly. It’s incredibly difficult to get that close to a skittish, sun-warmed insect. Unlike some photographers, who “cheat” by keeping insects in a fridge to slow them down, Peters refuses to tamper with wild butterflies.

So what’s the appeal of a long, sweaty day in pursuit of an elusive, fast-moving wild animal? “It just feels bloody brilliant,” says Peters. “If I’ve had a full day of good encounters with butterflies, met interesting butterfly people and I’ve got some good shots, that becomes a vault in my spiritual bank. It’s a happy feeling.”

Butterfly Safari by Andrew Fusek Peters is published on 15 March (£30, Bird Eye Books/Graffeg). To order a copy for £26.40 go to guardianbookshop.com . Delivery charges may apply

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Five plants to encourage butterflies in the UK

Valerian and verbena These pink and purple- flowers will re-seed and pop up everywhere once you’ve introduced them to your garden. A hugely popular nectar source for butterflies and others insects, they thrive in dry, sunny spots, even growing in walls and pavement cracks, so ideal for urban yards.

Buddleia The ubiquitous butterfly bush is well known for providing nectar (although some varieties are better than others). Cut back hard in April to stimulate later flowering in late summer, which is more useful for soon-to-hibernate butterflies. Buddleia is an “invasive” non-native species, so shouldn’t be planted in wild settings.

Garlic mustard or jack-by-the-hedge Providing nectar is one thing, but what really helps butterflies is caterpillars’ food plants. This creamy spring flower is dismissed as a “weed” but hosts orange tip caterpillars – look out for them in June. They hibernate on plants in chrysalis form so don’t be an overly tidy gardener and accidentally clear them away!

Holly and ivy Native ivy grows in small urban back yards and both it and holly are the food plant of the holly blue. Allow ivy to flower in late autumn and it provides valuable nectar for the red admiral before it hibernates.

Alder buckthorn or buckthorn A shrubby native tree which can be trimmed and incorporated into hedges, this is the food plant of the brimstone caterpillar. Spot the camouflaged caterpillars devouring the tender new leaves in May and June.

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12 BEST Safari Parks in the UK

From guided tours and drive through safaris, to wallaby walkthroughs and big cats roaming, here are the best safari parks in the uk..

Forget going to the zoo, this post is all about going on safari in the UK!

Did you know that the UK offers some of the best safari park experiences in Europe? It’s true! And it means you don’t need to spend big bucks when seeing the big 5.

Whether you’re looking for a drive through experience or to get up close and personal with the animals, we’ve compiled a list of the best safari parks in the UK. These are the best ones in England , Scotland and Wales .

From drive-through experiences at Longleat, to walkthrough experiences such as the foot safari at Woburn Safari Park, there are so many options to choose from. And all of them are guaranteed good days out!

If you prefer a guided tour with zoo experts, West Midland Safari Park offers fantastic mini bus tours. Or maybe you’d prefer to walk with the wallabies at Manor Wildlife Park? 

We absolutely love watching the monkeys climb on top of the cars at Blair Drummond – be warned because they are very cheeky! Will you choose to sleep with the animals, ride a safari, or hand feed parakeets?

Find out all of this and more in our list of the best UK safari parks.

Best Safari Parks in the UK

Longleat safari park.

Check out the UK’s Number 1 safari park at Longleat, Wiltshire! Discover big cats, elephants, wolves and more at the drive-through safari experience.

Wind up your windows for the safari of a lifetime as you pass through Tiger Territory, Cheetah Kingdom and The Big Game Park, where you can see a herd of Southern white rhinos.

Don’t forget to check out our favourite part – Monkey Mayhem. The troupe of macaques are known for causing mischief (just watch out for your windscreen wipers!)

Jump out at the African Village and Walking Safari as you journey across the African reserve and discover giraffes, zebras, wildebeest and ostriches. 

• Address: Longleat, Warminster, Wiltshire, BA12 7NW
• Website: https://www.longleat.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your Longleat tickets here

West Midland Safari Park

Whether you’re driving yourself or jumping on a guided minibus tour, the safari experience at West Midland Safari Park can be enjoyed by everyone.

Animal fanatics can book onto a guided minibus safari tour where the knowledgeable staff will teach you all about the different animals. Can you spot the rhinos, lions, camels and elephants across the 5 different zones? You can even take your own car if you’d prefer to experience the safari at your own pace.

View the animals up close on the African Walking Trail. Watch out for the elephants roaming their new habitat, or the giraffes grazing on the trees.

• Address: West Midland Safari Park. Bewdley, Worcestershire, DY12 1LF
• Website: https://www.wmsp.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your WMSP tickets here

Chessington Safari Resort

For a unique type of safari experience, check out Chessington Safari Resort. With a range of themed rooms, you can see animals whilst you sleep.

Choose between exquisitely themed rooms with views over the enclosures of your favourite animals. The giraffe room, tiger room, penguin room and monkey mayhem room overlook the Wanyama reserve.

Many of the rooms include access to the savannah splash pool and hotel entertainment. To finish off your trip, check Chessington World of Adventure for a day full of thrill rides and zoo fun. 

• Address: Chessington World of Adventures, Leatherhead Rd, Chessington. KT9 2NE
• Website: https://www.chessington.com/
• Tickets: Get your Chessington World of Adventures tickets here

ZSL Whipsnade Zoo

Whipsnade Zoo is one of the biggest zoos in England with over 10,000 animals. As part of the Zoological Society London , Whipsnade is dedicated to conservation, sustainability, and science. 

Whipsnade Zoo has many incredible animals you won’t see elsewhere, like brown bears and wolverines. This year an endangered baby Asian elephant was born at the zoo! Grab tickets for the Elephant Cafe where you will be able to see mum and baby.

Why not try one of the many experiences at the zoo? Become a keeper for the day and you can work with the rhinos, giraffes and elephants. 

• Address: Whipsnade, Dunstable. LU6 2LF
• Website: https://www.zsl.org/zsl-whipsnade-zoo
• Tickets: Get your Whipsnade tickets here

Blair Drummond Safari and Adventure Park

Scottish readers are definitely going to want to visit Blair Drummond Park to get their animal fix. From lions and macaques, to deer and antelope, there’s so much to see. 

Venture through the African animals, Asian animals, the lions and the macaque reserve in your own car for a day of family fun. Will you spot the rhino in the grass or hear the lion roar? The cheeky monkeys love to jump on cars as they pass so don’t forget to lock your doors!

Once you’ve had your drive-through fun you can check out the 300 species at Blair Drummond. I’m a big fan of the wallabies!

• Address: Blair Drummond, Stirling. FK9 4UR
• Website: https://www.blairdrummond.com/
• Tickets: Get your Blair Drummond tickets here

Manor Wildlife Park

If you like to get up close and personal with the wildlife, Manor Wildlife Park in Wales is the safari park for you. With several walkthrough safari experiences, there are so many animals to spot.

Start off your day in the Wallaby Walkthrough, where visitors can see young Joey’s hop into their mother’s pouch. I love to look for my favourite animal, the red panda, through the forest canopy. 

Don’t forget to visit the Lemurs in their Madagascan home where you can watch them jump and climb. If you’re lucky they might even sit next to you!

• Address: Manor Wildlife Park, St Florence, Tenby. SA70 8RJ
• Website: https://www.manorwildlifepark.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your Manor Wildlife Park tickets here

Port Lympne Safari Park

Come face to face with rare and endangered animals at Port Lympne Safari Park. Head to Kent to experience hundreds of acres of savannah. 

Port Lympne offers three unique safari experiences for you to choose from. On the AAA safari, an expert ranger takes you on a guided tour to see Savannah animals, like the giraffe, zebra, ostrich and wildebeest. Can you spot the black rhino?

Perhaps you’d prefer to jump on the rhino and giraffe safari, or the rangers tour, where you’ll journey through the Asian and African exhibits. 

• Address: Aldington Rd, Lympne, Hythe. CT21 4LR
• Website: https://www.aspinallfoundation.org/port-lympne/
• Tickets: Get your Pork Lympne tickets here

Knowsley Safari Park

Did you know that Knowsley Safari Park is actually the biggest safari park in the UK?

This 550 acre safari park is home to animals from across the globe. Journey through Eastern and Southern Asia, where you can see yaks and deer, or check out the African Savannah zone which is home to one of the largest white rhinos in the UK. Hop on the baboon bus for a car-friendly view of the baboons as they swing off the ropes.

Finish off your day with a walk through the Amur Tiger trail where you can get nose to nose with the two tigers.

• Address: Knowsley Safari Park, Prescot. L34 4AN
• Website: https://www.knowsleysafariexperience.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your Knowsley Safari Park tickets here

Woburn Safari Park

Check out over 300 acres of drive-through safari nestled amongst the Bedfordshire landscape at Woburn Safari Park. You can have a whole day of fun with the drive-through and walk-through safari experiences.

Drive through the vast nature reserves to spot the animals lurking within. From bison and rhinos, to bears and tigers, there are so many incredible animals across 5 zones. I’d recommend the Kingdom of the Carnivores, where you can see tigers, lions, bears and wolves!

End your experience with the foot safari, where you can explore small mammals and birds. With lemurs, penguins, birds of prey, otters, wallabies, and more, this is not one to be missed.

• Address: Woburn Safari Park, Crawley Rd, Woburn, Ridgmont, Bedford. MK43 0TU
• Website: https://www.woburnsafari.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your Woburn Safari Park tickets here

Knepp Wildlife Safari

If you’re looking for something different, check out the safari experiences at Knepp Safari. Encounter local wildlife, such as ponies, deer, and pigs, on one of the many vehicle and walking safaris at Knepp.

Hop on the all terrain vehicle and enjoy the half-day safari to discover British wildlife. You will see free-roaming herds of cattle, ponies, pigs and deer on your journey.

You’ll get to stop at the wildlife ‘refugia’ and spot small animals, such as grass snakes, toads and voles. There’s even a cafe stop so you can enjoy delicious local brownies.

Why not try a themed safari, such as the autumn safari, where you can spot red deer stags, or the bats and moths safari, where you can see nocturnal creatures.

• Address: Knepp Wildland Safaris, New Barn Farm, Swallows Ln, Dial Post, Horsham. RH13 8NN
• Website: https://www.kneppsafaris.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your Knepp Wildlife Safari tickets here

South Lakes Safari Zoo

Home to over 1,000 of the rarest and most endangered species across the globe, South Lakes Safari Zoo is the perfect place to get up close and personal with the animals.

From Africa and Madagascar, to Australia and South America, there’s so much to see. Check out the jaguars and snow leopards or head to the lemurs and arctic wolves. South Lakes Safari Zoo is committed to conservation so you can view the animals in their natural environment. 

Why not book an animal encounter to learn all about your favourite animal? I’d love to prepare Stanley the sloth his favourite snacks!

• Address: South Lakes Safari Zoo, Melton Ter, Lindal in Furness, Ulverston. LA12 0LU
• Website: https://www.southlakessafarizoo.com/
• Tickets: Get your South Lakes Safari Zoo tickets here

Peak Wildlife Park

Peak Wildlife Park offers fantastic walk through experiences for all the family. Whether you decide to explore the African village or walk with the penguins, there’s something for everyone.

Have you ever wanted to walk with the lemurs or wallabies? I certainly have! Watch the lemurs leap through the canopies and listen to their distinct calls, or check out wallaby wonderland where the friendly animals will munch on branches out of your hands.

Head to the African village where you can spot meerkats, chickens, and Pygmy goats. Don’t forget to give their horns a good scratch!

• Address: Peak Wildlife Park, Winkhill, Leek. ST13 7QR
• Website: https://www.peakwildlifepark.co.uk/
• Tickets: Get your Peak Wildlife Park tickets here

Twycross Zoo

Twycross Zoo prides itself on being at the heart of conservation. With several walkthrough enclosures and a brand new The Gruffalo Discovery Land, this is a fantastic choice for little ones. 

Walk among the flutters of colourful wings in the Butterfly Paradise or hand feed the birds at Lorikeet Landing. Head to the goat walkthrough where your little ones (and the biggest members of the family!) can stroke the farmyard animals. 

Check out the lemurs as they weave in and out of your feet. You can even watch the tigers roam above you in the glass visitor tunnel. 

• Address: Twycross Zoo, East Midland Zoological Society, Burton Rd, Atherstone. CV9 3PX
• Website: https://twycrosszoo.org/
• Tickets: Get your Twycross Zoo tickets here

That concludes our list of the best UK safari parks. Which one will you be visiting on your next day out with the family? If you have any questions at all, you can let us know in the comments below!

If you’re looking for other fun days out, then check out our guide to the best theme parks in the UK . Again, this is perfect for the whole family!

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Peacock Butterflies

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Scientific name:   Inachis io Size:   Wingspan approximately 60mm Distribution:   Found throughout the UK.  Less common in Scotland Months seen:   All year round, but mostly seen March to October Life span:   Up to eight months Habitat:   Meadows, roadside verges, woodland edges and gardens Food:   Nectar.  The caterpillars eat nettles Special features:   Peacock butterflies can be easily recognised by the four large, colourful eye spot markings on the wings, which look similar to those on a peacock (peafowl) tail feathers . In contrast the underside of the wings are almost black, allowing the Peacock butterfly to remain well camouflaged in garden sheds and outbuildings during its winter hibernation. The Peacock caterpillars are a velvety black colour and covered in tiny white dots.  The whole body is covered with black spines.  When first hatched they live in a silk web but once fully grown they disperse to find a pupation site.

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The 'time-travel' butterfly photos born out of a cancer diagnosis

Andrew Fusek-Peters turned the fear of a cancer diagnosis into something remarkable. As he was undergoing treatment, he worked on new techniques to photograph butterflies in flight and taking off from flowers. He then published a book with pictures of all the UK's native species of butterfly, called Butterfly Safari.

Audio producer: Rob Wilson

Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707

(Photo: A Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary taking off. Credit: Andrew Fusek-Peters)

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As seen in The Guardian and BBC Wildlife Magazine 

Hardback | 208 pages | Size 250 x 250mm   | Publication 14 March 2023 | ISBN 9781802583700

Andrew Fusek Peters has spent five years travelling round the UK to document and celebrate British butterflies. In  Butterfly Safari , he shows butterflies in a new light, capturing close-ups of wing scales and the delicate structure of eggs, eyes and antennae. He has also pioneered never before-seen flight shots and astonishing aerial sequences. Many of these photos have already appeared in the national papers and magazines.

Andrew Fusek Peters  is a wildlife and landscape photographer based in Shropshire. He has been on commission for the National Trust for the last eight years on the Long Mynd and Stiperstones nature reserves. His photos are regularly published in magazines and the national papers.

‘With so many of our butterflies in decline, this is a very timely book by one of the country’s best photographers. It’s a must-have for the bookshelves!’ Iolo Williams

‘This book captures the glorious beauty and heart-lifting spirit of butterflies better than any other.’ Patrick Barkham, author of The Butterfly Isles

‘This book captures the beauty and movement of butterflies like no other. The flight sequences are sublime – they are pure poetry in motion.’ Dr Martin Warren, former Chief Executive of Butterfly Conservation

'An extraordinary book. Every page WILL make you gasp with wonder.' Nicola Davies, author and zoologist

’One man’s incredible photos of all 58 of Britain’s native butterflies’   Patrick Barkham,  The Guardian

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UK’s Butterfly Winners and Losers of 2023 Revealed

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3 April 2024

The latest results from the annual UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS) , led by wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation, the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), show that 2023 was a mixed picture for butterflies, with some species soaring while others continued worrying declines.

Half the 58 species had a better than average year while the other half were below average at monitored sites. Species that flourished included Chequered Skipper , Brimstone , and Large Blue , which all recorded their best year since the UKBMS began in 1976.

Another species recording its best-ever year was the Red Admiral , a migratory species that has begun to overwinter in the UK as the climate has warmed, making it a common visitor across all habitats, including gardens. Its numbers have increased by 318% at monitored sites since 1976.

At the other end of the scale were the Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary and garden favourite the Small Tortoiseshell , recording their lowest numbers in the 48 years of monitoring, declining by 71% and 82%, respectively since 1976. Small Tortoiseshell had its worst year on record in England, second worst in Wales and joint fifth worst in Scotland in 2023, but did really well in Northern Ireland, logging its second best year.

The Large Blue, which was reintroduced to the UK after becoming extinct in the 1970s, recorded its best year yet, showing the conservation work with this species is really working.

Other species that had a remarkable year include Brown Argus , Marbled White , Comma , Black Hairstreak , and Holly Blue , which all ranked in their top three best years since 1976. On the other hand, Cryptic Wood White , Grizzled Skipper , Pearl-bordered Fritillary , Grayling and Scotch Argus faced significant difficulties.

The Green-veined White and Ringlet both had a poor year, perhaps suffering ongoing effects from the drought the previous summer.

The UKBMS, which began in 1976, is one of the world's longest-running insect monitoring schemes.

Dr Richard Fox, Head of Science at Butterfly Conservation, said: “Butterfly numbers fluctuate naturally from year to year, largely due to the weather, but the long-term trends of UK butterflies are mainly driven by human activity, including habitat damage and destruction, pesticide use, pollution and climate change. By monitoring long-term butterfly trends we can learn about the impact of climate change and other factors on our native wildlife.”

Dr Marc Botham, Butterfly Ecologist at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, added: “Butterflies are an indicator species, meaning they can tell us about the health of the wider environment, which makes the UKBMS data invaluable in assessing the health of our countryside and natural world in general. The mixed results this year emphasise the need for continued monitoring and conservation efforts to protect these important species and their habitats.”

Dr James Heywood, Breeding Bird Survey National Organiser at the British Trust for Ornithology, whose volunteers contribute to the UKBMS, commented: "In 2023, thousands of skilled volunteers monitored a record-breaking 3,316 sites across the UK, gathering valuable data that will help to inform conservation decisions for the future. We are incredibly grateful to each and every one of those people who carry out the monitoring and help us to maintain this highly valuable study.”

Chris Tuckett, Chief Officer for Strategy and Impact at JNCC, said: “The evidence produced through environmental monitoring, such as the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme demonstrates the vital role these schemes play in helping us understand the effects of pressures on the natural environment and, equally importantly, how efforts to address these pressures through nature conservation and recovery can be effective in reversing decline.

“JNCC has supported these schemes, which involve thousands of dedicated volunteers, for over 30 years, and remains committed to continuing to support them in the future.”

The UKBMS now records data on over 3,000 sites per year and the resulting dataset is a crucial resource for understanding changes in insect populations and has provided significant insights into almost all aspects of butterfly ecology.

As the UK faces the ongoing challenges posed by climate change and other environmental pressures, the work of the UKBMS and organisations like Butterfly Conservation, the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, the British Trust for Ornithology and JNCC remains essential in monitoring and protecting precious butterfly populations and the habitats they depend on.

Access all the data from UKBMS 2023  here