UK Insect Conservation Flashcards
What makes it difficult to assess the conservation status of most insects?
Their small size
From Victorian times to 2001 there was only 1 wood white species in the UK. Now there are three. Why is this?
The genitals were different between the wood white and Real’s wood white and then DNA markers showed that there was a new Irish clade that is distinct from the other two species (L. juvernica)
For which species group of insects is continuity key?
Species that rely on dead wood
Why is bare ground encouraged in many nature reserves?
Bare soil is what many invertebrates (especially solitary hymenoptera) need, to sink nest holes into warm soil.
Which species of beetles hadn’t been found in the UK since Victorian times but was re-found in 1999?
Brindalus porcicollis
Who rediscovered both the bladderwort flea beetle and Brindalys porcicollis?
Roger Booth
Which species went extinct in the UK after the decline of fens?
The large copper butterfly was confined to the fens of East Anglia but went extinct in the UK as fens went extinct.
Re-introduction from Dutch stock was tried in 1927 and 1955 but the population does not persist
What is the only plant that the swallowtail butterfly will feed on in the UK?
Moon parsley
What is the Latin name for the large blue butterfly?
Phengaris arion
When did the large blue butterfly go extinct in the UK and why?
Due to the loss of suitable habitat, the endemic subspecies of Large Blue became extinct in the British Isles in 1979, the last site being on Dartmoor in Devon.
How successful has the reintroduction of the large blue been in Britain?
After its extinction in the British Isles in 1979, the Large Blue became the subject of a highly-organised reintroduction programme, using stock from Sweden. The estimated number of adults flying in 2006 was 10,000 on 11 sites, which is the largest number seen in the British Isles for over 60 years.
Where does the female large blue lay her eggs?
On thyme.
How do caterpillars of large blues attract ants? How do they get them to carry them to the nest?
They grow a gland that secretes liquid that is attractive to ants. A red ant finds the caterpillar and drinks the secretion. The caterpillar balloons into an S shape, which resembles ant larva. The smell is colony-specific due to spending hours with the worker ant so the caterpillar is carried to the nest and eats ant larva until pupation
What conditions does the field cricket need?
Open, sandy areas that are south facing and never shaded. Succession, stabilisation, fertilisation and improvement are all damaging for it
When was the field cricket thought to be down to only one site? Where was this site?
In 1991 it was found to be down to one site (by a cricket pitch in Sussex)
