Save our moths, says Attenborough
In pictures: Endangered moths
A campaign to reverse the "catastrophic" decline in Britain's moth population will be launched today (13th May 2007) by Sir David Attenborough, the wildlife broadcaster.
The campaign, which is backed by an £806,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, follows a report last year that revealed that of the country's 337 larger moth species, two thirds showed a decreasing trend over 35 years.
Butterfly Conservation, the charity behind the campaign, says moths are a vital source of food for birds and small mammals, notably bats, and that many plants depend on them for pollination.
The report on larger moths - experts divide moths into larger moths and micro moths - was based on data collected by the government-funded laboratory, Rothamsted Research, near Harpenden, Herts, and showed that more species (75 per cent) had declined in southern than in northern Britain (55 per cent).
Some of the greatest declines were suffered by autumn rustic (92 per cent since 1968), ghost moth (73 per cent), blood-vein (79 per cent), lackey (90 per cent), oak hook-tip (81 per cent) and white ermine (77 per cent).

The decline of Britain's moths is blamed on changes in habitat, pesticide use, light pollution and climate change. The garden tiger moth, for example, likes dry winters and has been declining as winter rainfall has increased and is due to increase further because of climate change.
Sir David, who is president of Butterfly Conservation, said: "We must reverse these declines. If we don't, the outlook is grim. The consequences for Britain's wildlife would be too dire to contemplate."

The campaign aims to involve thousands of volunteers in monitoring populations of moths through the National Moth Recording Scheme, which is expected to be the largest project of its kind in the world. The hope is that more detailed information will highlight locations where species are struggling so measures to spark recoveries can be taken.