On the hunt for little green jewels

Gnorimus nobilis

Spring is here, the sun has started to come out and as we all head outdoors so the seasonal wildlife surveys head into full swing. The Peoples Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) is the latest group asking for the publics help in locating and recording the locations of a rare species.

Fast on the heals of the oil beetle hunt people who are heading into the New Forest are being asked to look out for one of Britain’s rarest beetles – the noble chafer. The stunning little beetle is easily spotted by it’s bronze-green pearlescent appearance. Normally found in our diminishing orchards, the beetle has been spotted in recent years in and around the New Forest.

Very little is known about the New Forest population of noble chafers and we have no idea where the females lay their eggs and the larvae develop.

Noble chafer beetle losing natural habitat.

It could be that as the fruit growing areas of England – Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Kent – lose it’s orchards the noble chafer beetle (Gnorimus nobilis) has started to head further south and into Oxfordshire and Hampshire for suitable habitat. Certainly in Europe the noble chafer makes it’s home in old oak woods so the New Forest may be a natural habitat for the beetle.

The beetles have been spotted on hogweed and elder in Hampshire by local insect experts. It’s not known how the beetles are surviving in the area or where they are living which is the purpose of this survey. Laura Bower, Conservation Officer at PTES, explains: “Very little is known about the New Forest population of noble chafers and we have no idea where the females lay their eggs and the larvae develop. There are very few orchards in the New Forest, so we think that they may be using old oak and beech trees and we are hoping that this study will answer this mystery.”

Call for the public to take part in beetle survey.

The PTES are hoping that it’s not just residents of the New Forest who are going to take part in the survey over the spring and summer. Anyone who visits the New Forest either on a day trip or longer break can make a contribution if they spot the beetle. Anywhere in the Forest is a possible location for the noble chafer beetle – walkways, bridleway, roadside verges, camp sites all offer a potential habitat for this elusive beetle.

If you want to take part and help build up a picture of the current state of the noble chafer in the New Forest you should take a photograph of any specimens found and if possible take a look in the cavities of any old trees in the near area to see if you can find evidence of beetle larvae droppings – or frass. you should then send any photographs and samples of frass to:

Peoples Trust for Endangered Species, 15 Cloisters House, 8 Battersea Park Road, London, SW8 4BG. Don’t forget to include the location and preferably a grid reference for the sightings.

Identifying the noble chafer beetle.

The noble chafer beetle is currently classed as vulnerable in the UK ad is at risk of extinction as it’s normal habitat of old trees in fruit orchards are dug up and the land converted to other uses. Much of the life of the noble chafer is spent as a larvae – it can spend up to two years in this state before transforming into the adult when it has a life span of 4 – 6 weeks.

Some things to look out for when identifying the beetle are:

colour – it has a metallic bronze-green colouring with speckled wing cases,
size- it can grow up to about 2 cm,
similar species – the noble chafer may be confused with the rose chafer beetle. Differences are the noble chafer is slightly smaller, has much more wrinkly wing cases that are also more speckled. On closer inspection you will find that the triangular area on the back formed between the wing cases is equilateral in the noble chafer and more elongated in the rose chafer. The middle and hind legs of a noble chafer are also ‘toothed’ while the legs of a rose chafer are smooth.

The beetles start to emerge as adults from mid-May and start to die down in numbers in early autumn. This is another great chance for amateur naturalists to get involved in building up a picture of wildlife in Britain.

As the numbers of wildlife surveys are now increasing I’ll spend the weekend putting together a separate section of the site which will display all the current UK based surveys which are looking for public involvement so there’s one central place you can visit to get the latest information.