Scots everywhere are being asked to help conserve native species of butterfly by planting butterfly-friendly wild flowers around their neighbourhoods.

As part of Scottish Biodiversity Week (19th - 27th May) to encourage people's involvement in conservation, Scottish Biodiversity Forum (SBF) is giving away 15,000 free packs of specially selected wild flower seeds to create new habitats for many species of butterfly including the orange-tip.

The free seed giveaway is just one of the features of the Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) supported week of events throughout the country to highlight the importance of maintaining Scotland's nature and wildlife. The easy to use seed packs contain a cocktail of native wildflower seeds packs requiring no special preparation and requiring minimum care after planting.

Event organiser Zeshan Akhter says:
"It would be wonderful to see clouds of butterflies and carpets of wildflowers across many areas of Scotland. We hope these packs of seeds will encourage people to do something positive during Scottish Biodiversity Week by helping restore a bit of Scotland's native butterfly habitats in their own backyard."

Scottish Natural Heritage species advisor, Dr Athayde Tonhasca says: "Butterflies will visit any garden, however small, if planted with species that provide the adults with nectar. Populating a garden with wildflowers helps recreate tiny but significant patches of habitat for these delicate creatures"

Scottish Biodiversity Week promotes the benefits which nature and wildlife bring to people's lives and communities throughout Scotland. Events throughout Scotland include talks, guided walks, pond-dipping, bird watching trips, nature reserve open days, wildflower planting days, nature photography/painting workshops and exhibitions, whale and dolphin watching trips. The website www.snh.org.uk/biodiversityweek carries a full programme of events and projects which give people opportunities to examine and interact with the biodiversity on their doorstep.

Zeshan Akhter says:
"The wildflower seeds will be distributed through Scottish Biodiversity Week local events and projects across the country. We would encourage anyone interested in helping to go to our website which has all the details about the events taking place nationally and locally."