Britain could be on the brink of a “bumper summer of butterflies”, an expert has said.

Prof Richard Fox, head of science at the UK charity Butterfly Conversation, in Newton Abbot, Devon, said: “We’ve had this incredibly warm, dry spring and this ongoing hot weather so that really puts them in a good place to put on a fantastic, colourful show in our gardens and countryside this summer.”

Fox said he hoped thousands of people would get involved in the Big Butterfly Count, external to record the number of butterflies seen in 15 minutes.

“You might just see a handful of butterflies in that time in your garden. “If you come into a big flower-rich place, then you might see dozens or even hundreds.”