It's a bug's life at Tarmac

 

A tiny rare water beetle has been discovered in a pond at a Tarmac quarry in Herefordshire.

Bernie Higgins, Tarmac's Biodiversity Officer, said: "This is such an amazing find. The most recent sighting of this beetle was just over the border in Wales in 1987, but it hasn't been recorded in England since 1908 in South Devon and that was in flowing water. The last sighting in a pool was in 1869, also in South Devon."

Will Watson, ecologist said: "In total we found 17 species of water beetle in this pond as well as great crested newts, however we never dreamt we'd find something so rare, it's so exciting.

The Diminutive Diver Bidessus minutissimus, is a Biodiversity Action Plan species and is currently rated as a Red Data Book 3 species.

 

See more on Tarmac's sustainability microsite and conserving biodiversity.

 

16 November 2009