Butterfly conservation given new lease after 30 years
A nature reserve working to boost the butterfly species has been given a new lease.
Church Commissioners for England has confirmed it will continue to support conservation work at Magdalen Hill Down near Winchester.
The down is an open space on Church Commissioner land within South Downs National Park and can be accessed by foot from the city centre.
Dorset-based Butterfly Conservation has created a home in the park for more than 30 species during the last 30 years.
The Church Commissioners has brought two leases together to form a new agreement, so the non-profit organisation can continue its work on the 46 hectare (113 acre) site.
Cameron McKillop, from the Church Commisioners for England, said: "We are always looking for parts of our land that can be harnessed to promote nature recovery and this agreement means this local success story will continue."
The conservation programme is home to the largest population of Brown Argus butterflies in Hampshire.
The team has also reversed a decline in the area's Adonis Blue butterflies, a species native to chalk environments, through scrub clearance and grazing management.
The organisation's work is supported by a grant-funded Higher Level Countryside Stewardship Scheme and Hampshire County Council.
Julian Bendle, from the conservation group, said: "The site has been transformed into one of Hampshire's richest chalk grassland butterfly sites, with more than 30 different butterfly species recorded annually, including many rarities.
"Restoration work on one area of the site has transformed it from intensive arable production to flower-rich grassland and it is now one of the top ten sites in the county for many butterfly species."
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