Records of
stag beetles in Suffolk are required for this year. Please send these to the
SBRC or direct to me at 3 Silver Leys, Bentley, Ipswich IP9 2BS. The
information required is: date and time of sighting; location (grid reference,
if possible); sex; size (see White Admiral 51); surroundings e.g. crawling on lawn near old tree stump/flying along hedgerow near oak tree; and any
comments e.g. seen along this hedge in previous years/male attempting to mate
with female.
If you find a
dead stag beetle, please put it in a container (e.g. matchbox , 35mm film
canister ) and send this in an airtight envelope to the address given above
with the details of exactly where you found it. The dead specimens will be used
to study differences in stag beetle size.
New locations
for sightings of stag beetles include Hintlesham ( Mrs Damant ), Bulmer and
Ufford. The latter two have yet to be checked for breeding populations.
Escallonia
adds another type of wood to those that stag beetle larvae have been found to
inhabit in Suffolk ( Mr and Mrs Blackmore, Bentley ).
To date ( 24
June ) the stag beetle ‘season’ has been poor. The weather has been very
changeable, with many days being cool and windy. The optimum conditions for
stag beetle activity are:
warm (16 °C ), humid, and windless at dusk, when the
males take flight in search of females with which to mate.
Colin Hawes
Don't forget you can download the whole of each White Admiral as a .zip file.
(Typically under 700 kb) ~ See the top menu.