The Wood White at Front Yard Company.

Just like recycling boxes and wheelie bins, the beautiful Black Lark, Wood White butterfly (L. reali) and York Groundsel are new arrivals to this country. The Front Yard Company hopes we can create an environment that is enjoyable for both them and us.

A new species of butterfly in the UK, the first to be discovered for over 110 years.

The new species of Wood White (scientific name: Leptidea reali) looks very similar to the 'normal' Wood White (Leptidea sinapis) and has only been identified by examining the genitalia of museum specimens.

So far, the new species has been found only in Ireland (both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland) and the specimens examined from Britain have turned out to be the normal species of Wood White.

The discovery, made by Brian Nelson, Robert Nash (Ulster Museum), Maurice Hughes and Martin Warren (Butterfly Conservation), has helped explain a curious phenomenon revealed recently in 'The Millennium Atlas of Butterflies in Britain and Ireland'. In Britain, the Wood White is true to its name and found in woodland rides but is declining rapidly, whereas in Ireland it occurs in more open habitats (such as road verges, scrub and sheltered grassland) and has expanded rapidly northwards in recent decades. The phenomenon can now be explained because they are two different, but almost indistinguishable, species that may have different ecological requirements.