A £450,000 project has been launched in north Lancashire and Cumbria to help save one of the UK’s rarest butterflies.

The High Brown Fritillary has seen an 80 per cent drop in numbers over the past 35 years due to a decline in woodland management, coppicing and changes in agriculture.

But the scheme aims to bring back the butterfly by enhancing and preserving habitat within the Morecambe Bay limestone area – the last remaining stronghold of the species.

“These butterflies are disappearing fast and could well become extinct in the UK,” said Martin Warren, chief executive of Butterfly Conservation, which is co-ordinating the four-year project.

“This project builds on the work that has been carried out over the past 25 years. It is really critical,” he added.

Butterflies such as the High Brown Fritillary live in woodland clearings, explained Mr Warren, but many of these open spaces have become overgrown .

He said: “A lot of the sites need work because they are no longer grazed or managed so have become overgrown. We will work with local landowners and the Forestry Commission to remove those scrubs and create open spaces to encourage butterflies.”

Around 25 hectares of scrub will be cleared and 15 hectares of brambles and 12 hectares of rides and glades will be managed.

The charity will also encou-rage woodland coppicing, which helps maintain an ideal habitat for butterflies. There will be 10 hectares of coppicing as part of the project.

The conservation work will be carried out at 27 sites around Arnside and Silverdale, Hutton Roof, Brigsteer and Hampsfield Fell.

The project will also help to support other threatened species of butterfly, including the Duke of Burgundy.

Mr Warren said he expected to see an increase in numbers within the next couple of years. “They should respond pretty quicklly, “ he said. “They are quick to decline but in the right conditions they are quick to increase too.”

The project has been funded through a grant of almost £250,000 from Grantscape, through the landfill communities fund, with the rest of the cash coming from the Forestry Commission and donations to Butterfly Conservation.

Other organisations involved in the project include Natural England, the Lake District National Park Authority, Arnside and Silverdale Area of Out-standing Natural Beauty, the National Trust, RSPB, Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Lancashire Wildlife Trust.

The charity is now seeking volunteers, particularly local people, to continue the project’s work in the future.

For more information contact Martin Wain on 01524 389361 or email mwain@butterfly-conservation.org.