Recording your butterfly or moth sightings




This page will help you choose the best method for recording the butterflies and moths that you see.
There are three things you need to record a butterfly or moth sighting:
  • The butterfly (or moth) name
  • The location, preferably in the form of a 6-figure grid reference
  • A person or organisation to send the sighting to

There are several different ways of doing this depending on the type of technology that you use.


 The iRecord app

If you use a smart phone, such as an iPhone, then one of the best ways of recording your sightings is to use the iRecord app which sends your records to the Biological Records Centre.
You will need to register with them but once you do this then you will find that recording is made very easy and you are able to look at your past sightings.

This app allows you to select the butterfly that you saw, either a single sighting, or if you are surveying an area.
The app helps you as they provide photographs of the butterflies.
It also allows you to pinpoint your location using a GPS search so that an accurate grid reference can be sent over.
The iRecord website can also be used as well as the phone app.
This guide may also be useful.


 e-Mail the regional recorder

You can record your sightings using a pen and paper whilst out and about.
This can be particularly useful if you are recording in big numbers.

Then you can locate your precise location at Grid Reference Finder - all you need to do is find the location you want on the map and right click for a 10 figure grid reference.

You can then report these in an e-Mail to the relevant regional recorder (Northants or Bedfordshire). If you wish to report a moth sightings then the relevant contacts are: