Assistant warden, Anna Jemmett, writes about her experience of successfully tracking a rare beetle at RSPB Scotland Loch Leven.
Thanatophilus dispar is an endangered species of carrion beetle. It is classed as critically endangered in the UK and is globally rare. Loch Leven is one of only two places it has been recorded in Scotland It is a very special little beetle and we are lucky enough to have it on reserve here at RSPB Scotland Loch Leven. It is a scavenging beetle, eating rotting carcasses in wetland habitats, particularly known for its fondness of rotten fish!
The last survey for T. dispar on reserve was in 2010 so we wanted to have a look and see where it is living on the reserve now. I was very excited to start this survey; it’s not every day you get to look for endangered beetles!
I surveyed for the beetles using pitfall traps. A pitfall trap is a trap that is buried in the ground that the insect falls into and then can’t escape. Because of this they can only be used in good weather and not for very long. I set the 10 traps across the reserve in the evening and emptied them first thing the next morning so that any insects trapped don’t have to spend too long in there. I put a piece of delicious rotten fish into the bottom of the trap, hoping the putrid smell would entice the beetles in- and it worked!
One of the pitfall traps- The plastic cover stops debris falling in.
I found a total of 6 beetles in the traps, 3 in an area they have been found before and 3 in a new part of the reserve. Already we know a little more about them than we did before. The beetles were all marked with a spot of paint before being released. This will allow me to identify any individuals that I have previously trapped and so we can use the data to give us an idea of how many beetles we have on the reserve. I have two more sets of trapping to do this summer so I will write another blog at the end of the season to let you all know the results. Watch this space!
Anna Jemmett
Assistant Warden, Tayside reserves