Duke and Duchess of Cambridge release new photo of Princess Charlotte

The 6-year-old princess appears to share her father's love for conservation. Photo / Twitter

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have released a photograph of Princess Charlotte holding a butterfly to raise awareness of the UK's Big Butterfly Count initiatives.

Catherine, 39, took the adorable snap of her 6-year-old daughter studying the beautiful wings of the Red Admiral while taking part in the Big Butterfly Count in Norfolk.

A tweet on The Cambridges' Twitter page reads: "We wanted to share these beautiful Peacock and Red Admiral butterflies as part of Big Butterfly Count initiatives taking place across the UK.

🦋 We wanted to share these beautiful Peacock and Red Admiral butterflies as part of Big #ButterflyCount initiative taking place across the UK. pic.twitter.com/rZlvshEvbK

— The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) August 7, 2021

"Butterfly Conservation are encouraging us all to count these incredible creatures because not only are they beautiful creatures to be around but they are also extremely important."

Butterflies are a firm favourite in the Cambridge household as Prince George, 8, celebrated his 1st birthday with a visit to the Sensational Butterflies exhibition at London's Natural History Museum in 2014.

Prince William - who also has Prince Louis, 3, with Catherine - previously admitted he felt a "new sense of purpose" in protecting the planet since having children.

The 39-year-old royal has "always loved nature" but his young family gave him added drive to do what he can to look after the natural world for future generations.

Speaking on the documentary "Prince William: A Planet For Us All" last year, he said: "Now I have got George, Charlotte and now Louis in my life - your outlook does change. You want to hand over to the next generation, the wildlife in a much better condition.

"I always believe it is possible to give young people hope and belief that things can get fixed.

"I have the belief that if we all work together, we can make a difference."

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A post shared by Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@dukeandduchessofcambridge)

William's grandfather, the late Duke of Edinburgh, committed much of his life to helping to tackle environmental causes and promoting conservation.

Prince Philip - who died in April aged 99 - was the president of WWF-UK between 1961 and 1982, and president emeritus of WWF International.

And his grandson has continued Philip's efforts, launching the £50 million Earthshot Prize last year, which will be awarded annually from 2021 to 2030, to "five winners whose solutions substantially help the environment".