Join Isabella Tree and butterfly man Neil Hulme as they anticipate the exciting reintroduction of the black-veined white – a butterfly that went extinct in Britain a hundred years ago. Standing in front of the cages at Knepp where butterflies recently imported from Spain have laid their eggs, Neil is like an anxious midwife. Will the caterpillars survive the winter and the various predators insinuating themselves through the netting? How many butterflies will emerge in spring for their release on the South Downs next year? 

Isabella Tree is co-founder of Knepp rewilding project and award-winning author of ‘Wilding’, which was made into a film in 2024.