Another Chance Discovery
So many discoveries happen by chance... and this was the case yesterday with a new Red Data Book species for Rye Harbour.
I had been managing the vegetation at Camber Castle and hidden an arrow there (!) and was on my way back when I noticed some sheep fencing that needed repairing. The gap in the fence gave easy access to a fine specimen of the fungus known as chicken of the woods growing on an old willow tree - so I got out my camera and photographed it.
As I was putting my camera away a 5mm shiny and patterned beetle caught my eye and I just managed one photo before it disappeared under the willow bark. With the rather poor photo in the camera I repaired the fence and when I got back to my office sent the beetle photo to my colleague Chris Bentley, to see if he knew it. He hadn't seen one here but determined it as Diaperis boleti, a Red Data Book insect classed as vulnerable. See better photos here. And there have only been 6 previous records in Sussex!
This is the 110th RDB invertebrate recorded at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve and these are the species that we manage our special habitats for. So for Diaperis boleti we will have to make sure there are lots of old willow trees left to fall and rot... that shouldn't be too difficult.
So, three lessons here:
- keep your eyes open for wildlife at all times
- always carry a camera
- know who to send a photo to (if you don't have a knowledgeable colleague, then there are lots of Facebook pages, including Sussex Wildlife Trust)