RUGGED OIL BEETLE STRONGHOLD IN THE STROUD VALLEYS
Monday 9th January 2012
 Buglife.jpg "Rugged Oil Beetle at Strawberry Banks nature reserve (c) Buglife")
Rugged Oil Beetle at Strawberry Banks nature reserve (c) Buglife
Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust is celebrating the discovery of eleven rugged oil beetles at its Elliott nature reserve, on Swift’s Hill near Stroud.
The rare rugged oil beetle (Meloe rugosus) is one of four species of oil beetle that are believed to have suffered drastic declines in the UK. Another four oil beetle species are now thought to be extinct in the UK.
Andrew Whitehouse of Buglife, visited Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust in November to confirm if historical records that the Stroud valleys are a stronghold for species still holds true. Early results are very encouraging.
Trust ecologist Richard Spyvee recorded an astonishing eleven rugged oil beetles together at Elliott nature reserve, just before Christmas, and Stroud reserves manager Pete Bradshaw, along with volunteer Gemma Western, found one in November at Strawberry Banks nature reserve, as part of the Trusts ongoing survey and monitoring programme.
It's a very good sign we are getting our habitat management right if we can find rare, specialised parasites.
"Rugged oil beetles are fascinating" says Kathy Meakin, Survey and Monitoring Coordinator at the Trust. "Very unusually the adults are nocturnal and active in winter, whereas our other three oil beetles are usually found during the spring. Oil beetles are parasites of solitary mining bees, the larvae hitching a ride on the bees to their nests where they eat the bee’s eggs and pollen and nectar stores. We don't yet know which species of bee the rugged oil beetle parasitises, but good numbers of beetles must mean good numbers of solitary bees. It's a very good sign we are getting our habitat management right if we can find rare, specialised parasites. "
Buglife are encouraging the public to go out and look for oil beetles and have identification information on their website. Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust will continue to search for the beetle at its other Stroud Valleys grassland reserves. Anyone interested in getting involved is welcome to get in touch.
Andrew Whitehouse, Conservation Officer at Buglife – The Invertebrate Conservation Trust says “We usually find Rugged oil beetles in low numbers when we survey sites – perhaps ones or twos, so to find eleven in one go is impressive. We know that the Stroud valleys are a national stronghold for this species – the work of Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust will ensure that they continue to thrive here. We are delighted that the Trust are helping us conserve these amazing beetles.”
To get involved in surveying and monitoring contact Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust on 01452 383333 or email info@gloucestershirewildlifetrust.co.uk
For more information about the national oil beetle survey visit www.buglife.org.uk
Tagged with: Buglife, Elliott, Nature reserve, Rugged Oil Beetle, Strawberry banks, Swifts hill