Wiltshire’s Marsh Fritillaries Need Your Help

Wandering through one of our nature reserve meadows in late spring or early summer, you might just spot a flash of orange and brown fluttering low through the grasses. That’s the marsh fritillary - one of the UK’s most beautiful and threatened butterflies. Once common across the UK and Europe, its numbers have plummeted over the last century, and we have been working hard to ensure they keep a stronghold in Wiltshire. 

The marsh fritillary’s well-being is a sign of a healthy ecosystem. Its survival depends on healthy chalk and damp grasslands, especially those rich in its favourite foodplant, Devil’s-bit scabious. This plant, along with the patchwork of short and tussocky grasses the caterpillars need for shelter, forms the perfect butterfly habitat. So, when the marsh fritillary is flourishing, it’s a good indication that the surrounding environment is also thriving. 

The good news?  

Wiltshire’s unique chalk landscapes and meadows are some of the best places in England for this butterfly. Aided by teams of volunteers plug planting Devil’s bit scabious and working in partnership with other landowners, we have been restoring and protecting these habitats. 

But this glorious butterfly still needs our help. 

Marsh fritillary form “metapopulations”- networks of small colonies that depend on each other for long-term survival. If one colony disappears, another nearby can repopulate it. But this only works if there are enough well-connected, suitable sites across the landscape. Without careful management, even short-term declines could tip the balance. 

That’s where you come in. 

We’re launching a fundraising appeal to support vital habitat restoration, monitoring, and community engagement across Wiltshire. From surveying caterpillar webs in summer to planting Devil’s-bit scabious and expanding the network of butterfly-friendly corridors, your support will help give this stunning species a fighting chance.