Thanks to UK conservation efforts, purple emperor butterflies can now be seen as far north as Derbyshire. Ken Orpe of the Butterfly Conservation charity has been awarded a Green Apple environmental award for his work in persuading Derbyshire landowners to plant sallows, the food plant of the caterpillars, on their estates.
It's also been a record year for purple emperors at the Knepp Estate, where they counted 283 on a single day. A reward for providing an ideal environment.
