The large heath is a chestnut-coloured butterfly with striking black spots on its wings restricted to wet habitats in northern Britain, Ireland and a few isolated areas of Wales and central England. Its caterpillars eat one plant – hare’s-tail cottongrass – which only grows in peat bogs.
Numbers have declined significantly in England and Wales during the 20th Century due to habitat damage, and the species is now listed as endangered.
Volunteers are being trained to carry out monitoring, involving weekly walks along fixed routes to count butterflies.
Georgina is looking for indicators where peatland restoration is improving the habitat for the large heath – and hopes the project will give her the evidence and eventually help landowners manage peat bogs.
The study is focusing largely on sites where restoration work has already taken place. It is also trialling the use of drones to map peat bog habitats and identify key plant species more quickly.
The Welsh government has awarded £249,000 towards the project, supported by lottery money.
The project also involves the RSPB, the National Trust and Natural Resources Wales, although much of the land remains privately owned, adding to the challenges.
Georgina said: “We’ve got huge blanks on the map – for some of these sites we haven’t had records for 25 years. If we get glorious summer weather and I can go out and visit sites five days a week then I will.”