Small Skipper
(Thymelicus sylvestris)

Presently a common and widespread resident, although virtually unknown prior to the mid-1970's. More information.

Large Skipper
(Ochlodes faunus)

A common and widespread resident, but with smaller numbers recorded during the last few years. More information.

Dingy Skipper
(Erynnis tages)

An uncommon resident, nowadays mainly restricted to areas of industrial waste in mid-Cheshire. More information.

Grizzled Skipper
(Pyrgus malvae)

Extinct. Formerly an uncommon resident in the county with several colonies still in existence in the 1940’s and early 1950’s, but with a last sighting on the Wirral in 1971.

Wood White
(Leptidea sinapis)

Extinct. Not reliably recorded in the county since the nineteenth century. Last sightings on the Wirral in 1855.

Clouded Yellow
(Colias croceus)

An irregular immigrant, but with a few insects recorded in most years.

Pale Clouded Yellow
(Colias hyale)

An extreme rarity in Britain with identification difficult due to closely related species. There have been no confirmed sightings in Cheshire since the early 1940’s.

Brimstone
(Gonepteryx rhamni)

Now a fairly common resident in the east of the county; scarcer in the west. More information.

Large White
(Pieris brassicae)

An abundant and widespread resident with numbers sometimes augmented by immigrants.

Small White
(Pieris rapae)

An abundant and widespread resident, but seen in lower numbers in upland areas.

Green-veined White
(Pieris napi)

A widespread and abundant resident, especially during favourable weather conditions in damp years. More information.

Orange Tip
(Anthocharis cardamines)

A common and widespread resident throughout the county. More information.

Green Hairstreak
(Callophrys rubi)

Most populations now confined to the Pennine foothills, plus a few isolated colonies in lowland areas. More information.

Purple Hairstreak
(Neozephyrus quercus)

Relatively common, especially at sites on the Wirral and in the south-west of Cheshire. More information.

White-letter Hairstreak
(Satyrium w-album)

Not uncommon on the Wirral, but a scarce and elusive butterfly over much of the county. More information.

Small Copper
(Lycaena phlaeas)

A common and widespread resident, but with numbers fluctuating annually. More information.

Long-tailed Blue
(Lampides boeticus)

An extremely rare visitor to Britain. Only sightings in Cheshire were of single butterflies at Heswall in 1887 and Huntington in 2006.

Small Blue
(Cupido minimus)

Extinct. The only county record dates back to the nineteenth century when it was recorded from Neston.

Silver-studded Blue
(Plebeius argus)

Became extinct in the county during the 1920's, but re-introduced at one site on the Wirral in 1994. Learn more.

Common Blue
(Polyommatus icarus)

Still a widespread resident, although much scarcer in recent times due to loss of habitat. More information.

Holly Blue
(Celastrina argiolus)

A fairly common and widespread resident, although undergoes cyclical fluctuations. More information.

Duke of Burgundy
(Hamearis lucina)

Extinct. The only Cheshire records date to the mid-1800’s when there were several reports from between Hooton and Eastham on the Wirral.

White Admiral
(Limentis camilla)

Red Admiral
(Vanessa atalanta)

An annual immigrant of varying abundance, but often common and widespread.

Painted Lady
(Cynthia cardui)

An annual immigrant, often recorded in small numbers, although 1996 produced a massive influx. More information.

Small Tortoiseshell
(Aglais urticae)

An extremely common and widespread resident with immigration noted in some years.

Large Tortoiseshell
(Nymphalis polychloros)

During the mid-1800’s this butterfly was resident in the county in small numbers. Last confirmed sighting was at Chester in 1876.

Camberwell Beauty
(Nymphalis antiopa)

A great rarity in the county, although sightings have increased during the last few years.

Peacock
(Inachis io)

A common and widespread resident that has become more numerous since the 1970's.

Comma
(Polygonia c-album)

A common and widespread resident that has extended its range in Cheshire since the early 1980's. More information.

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
(Boloria selene)

A scarce resident now restricted to a single breeding site in the county. More information.

Pearl-bordered Fritillary
(Boloria euphrosynes)

Extinct. Still bred at several sites in the county in the early 1900’s, but colonies continued to be lost until there was a final confirmed sighting at Delamere in 1941.

High Brown Fritillary
(Argynnis adippe)

Extinct. Few records exist of the status of this butterfly in Cheshire, other than reports from the Delamere area in 1919 and 1922.

Dark Green Fritillary
(Argynnis aglaja)

Formerly bred in Cheshire, but still recorded in most years as a scarce vagrant. More information.

Silver-washed Fritillary
(Argynnis paphia)

An extreme rarity in the county with the last sighting at Knutsford Heath in 1995 and Macclesfield Forest in 2006. More information.

Marsh Fritillary
(Euphydryas aurinia)

Extinct. This butterfly bred at several sites in the county during the mid-1800’s, but was last recorded in the Wych Valley in 1882.

Speckled Wood
(Pararge aegeria)

An abundant and widespread resident that has significantly extended its range in recent years.

Wall
(Lasiommata megera)

Formerly a widespread resident, but in recent years only thinly distributed in very small numbers.

Marbled White
(Melanargia galathea)

A rarity in the county with only single vagrants occasionally recorded.

Grayling
(Hipparchia semele)

A fairly uncommon resident, mainly restricted to coastal localities on the Wirral. More information.

Gatekeeper
(Pyronia tithonus)

An abundant and widespread resident that has extended its range in recent years.

Meadow Brown
(Maniola jurtina)

A very common and widespread resident, with little change of status noted. More information.

Ringlet
(Aphantopus hyperantus)

Formerly a rarity, but now breeding annually at a few sites in the south of the county. More information.

Small Heath
(Coenonympha pamphilus)

Formerly common and widespread, but now mainly restricted to the Wirral and Pennine foothills. More information.

Large Heath
(Coenonympha tullia)

Extinct. Formerly bred on mosslands in Cheshire, with drainage for industrial and agricultural purposes a prime cause for the loss of some colonies. Last authenticated record from Delamere in 1929.

Monarch
(Danaus plexippus)

A rare immigrant to the county with the only recent sighting near Nantwich in 1999.