A butterfly has made its first visit to the Falkirk Council area during the International Year of Biodiversity.

The Holly Blue butterfly, normally found in England has been spotted in the Falkirk area.

And a Comma butterfly, a rare visitor to the area has also been seen in the Carronshore area after being spotted for the first time last year!

The Falkirk Area Biodiversity Partnership has been working hard to encourage people to garden with wildlife in mind.

Councillor Charles MacDonald, Convener of the Environment and Community Safety Committee said: "The arrival of this butterfly is an exciting first for the area. It just goes to show that providing gardens with lots of nectar-rich flowers can encourage all sorts of spectacular wildlife. Even the smallest backyard can be a haven for wildlife.

"In this International Year of Biodiversity, it's great to see that the Falkirk area is playing host to new species as well as helping to protect our existing wealth of biodiversity."

The Holly Blue butterfly made its first recorded visit this summer to a garden in Bo'ness. The Holly Blue is normally found in England. Records suggest that this species is slowly moving northwards, however it is still rare to come across it in Scotland.

The same Bo'ness garden last year played host to another rare visitor: a Comma butterfly.

That too was a first for the area as far as records show. This year a comma butterfly has also been spotted just a little further north at Garibaldi Bing, near Carronshore.

The Comma, with its ragged wing edges, is a fascinating butterfly. The scalloped edges and cryptic colouring of the wings conceal it amongst dead leaves when it hibernates, while the caterpillars, flecked with brown and white markings, look like bird droppings.

The Comma has made a significant comeback over recent years, after a severe decline in numbers during the twentieth century. It is now widespread in southern Britain and its range is expanding northwards into southern and central Scotland.

The gradual move northwards of butterfly species such as the Holly Blue and Comma is thought to be due to the effects of climate change. Gradually warming temperatures are allowing butterflies to move north into areas which were previously too cold for them. However, they also need suitable habitat to move into and the availability of gardens with plenty of nectar-rich flowers and caterpillar food plants is really important to butterflies like the Holly Blue.

If you have an interesting wildlife sighting from the Falkirk Council area you can report it on the Ranger Service pages at www.falkirk.gov.uk