Between Thursday, July 18 and Sunday, August 10, a total of 3,485 people in Somerset took part in Butterfly Conservation’s Big Butterfly Count, spotting 62,501 butterflies and day-flying moths across the county. Nationally, over 125,000 people took part in the UK-wide count – the highest turnout on record – logging around 1.7 million sightings. The average number of butterflies and moths seen per count in Somerset rose to 11.3, a 35% increase compared to 2024. “The 15-year Big Butterfly Count trends show that more than twice as many widespread species have declined significantly than have increased. Butterfly Conservation also confirmed that next year’s Big Butterfly Count will take place from Thursday, July 17 to Saturday, August 9, 2026.