Latest news (May 2008): The Scarlet malachite beetle survey is now underway. You can download a copy of the survey leaflet below. If you think you have seen the beetle contact info@buglife.org.uk.
How to take part in the survey
The Scarlet malachite beetle (Malachius aeneus) is a colourful and somewhat eccentric beetle that appears for only three weeks in May and June. It's known from only eight village greens in the UK and is so rare we need your help to find it.
The beetle emerges in early May (last year the first beetle appeared on Wednesday 2nd May - almost a week earlier than usual) and will be out and about until mid June. So now is the time to get out into gardens and the countryside to see if you can find this rare and beautiful little animal.
If you think you have found one, firstly check it against the photograph in our survey leaflet (see below) to make sure you've got the right beetle. If you can, please take a photo (digital cameras or mobile phones are the quickest way of getting the image to us), or put the beetle in a container with some leaves, note the exact location where you found it and contact Buglife immediately.
Click here to read our survey information leaflet in PDF form.
Buglife's work to conserve the Scarlet malachite beetle
Here's the challenge that faced Buglife: how do you conserve a beetle that's so rare nobody looks out for it? W
hat's more, the beetle is the size of your little fingernail. And, to make matters worse, it can only be seen for one month of the year, between May and June.
So in 2005 Buglife organised the first ever public survey for the beetle, which is currently known from eight small sites in Essex, Hertfordshire and Hampshire. We distributed tens of thousands of leaflets, gave talks in schools and made a plea for help on the BBC. The result was incredible, with hundreds of people on the lookout for the beetle. With your help we were able to identify four new sites, helping to ensure its long term survival.
In 2006 we decided to expand the survey, into those areas where the beetle has been lost, including Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent, Surrey, Dorset and Somerset. We also got support from an unlikely source - Jimmy Doherty, beetle enthusiast and star of BBC’s ‘Jimmy’s Farm’. Jimmy officially launched the survey at his Essex Pig Company in Suffolk in May. His involvement helped to raise the profile of the survey and garner additional media coverage. Although the weather was terrible, you helped us to find one new site for the beetle. To cap it all, the end of the survey was marked by the entire front page of The Independent featuring a large photo of the beetle on 24th June, to accompany a piece about invertebrate declines.
In 2007 beetle experts continued working to discover where the beetle hides out. A possible breakthrough was made when what appeared to be a 'baby' beetle was found in a thatched roof - however it escaped before we had chance to properly identify it!
This year a dedicated team of volunteers will continue monitoring the beetle at its main Essex site, the fifth year that they have been doing this invaluable work. Elsewhere we will be trying to ensure that the places where the beetle lives are properly managed.
