New figures were released this week by Butterfly Conservation and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) as part of The State of the UK’s Butterflies 2011 report.

The report does show that conservation efforts have started to protect the most vulnerable of species, including the heath fritillary, which has been brought back from the brink of extinction. However, other species like the Duke of Burgundy (pictured) and the high brown fritillary are still in real danger of becoming extinct.

Butterflies are often seen as an indicator species, which gives a good idea of the state of the environment, so this is causing concern about the state of the insect biodiversity in the UK.