Butterfield Farmland
Regional Landscape Kleine en Grote Nete
**Butterflied farmland** refers to agricultural land that is managed with special attention to butterflies and other insects. By creating flower-rich field margins, hedgerows, rough vegetation, and limiting the use of pesticides, a structurally rich landscape emerges that provides habitat for both day- and night-flying butterflies. Butterflies are important indicators of biodiversity: when they thrive, the entire ecosystem benefits.
In the Antwerp Kempen, the Regional Landscape Kleine and Grote Nete (RLKGN) is actively committed to this effort. Within the PDPO project “Butterflied Farmland,” RLKGN invites farmers to participate in moth counts. Farmers receive LED buckets that allow them to attract and count moths themselves, often in collaboration with volunteers and experts. This helps generate insight into the biodiversity present on farmland.
In addition, RLKGN is working on developing a Functional Ecological Network by creating hedges, shrub borders, tree lines, ponds, and ditches. These small landscape elements connect nature areas and strengthen the habitat of butterflies and other species. Within the “Climate-Resilient Food Landscape” project, agricultural land is being designed as part of a green-blue network that buffers water and supports biodiversity.
RLKGN also organizes training sessions, supports farmers with subsidy applications (such as eco-schemes), and strengthens cooperation between agriculture, nature, and policy. Projects like “Crazy About Partridge” further contribute to a biodiverse and functional landscape.
Thanks to this integrated approach, not only is the habitat of butterflies improved, but a future-proof, nature-rich agricultural landscape emerges in which farmers and nature can thrive together.
