Rare Invertebrates in the Cairngorms

The Rare Invertebrates in the Cairngorms (RIC) project is working to improve the conservation fortunes of some of the Cairngorms National Park’s rarest species.

Overview

Through this project we are trying to learn more about six invertebrate species and their distribution across the Cairngorms National Park

The six species are: silver stiletto fly, Kentish glory moth, pine hoverfly, shining guest ant, dark bordered beauty moth and small scabious mining bee. These are six of the UK’s rarest insect species and the Cairngorms National Park is an important stronghold for all of them.

We hope to improve their conservation fortunes by recruiting local volunteers to help survey for them, as well as working with landowners to ensure important habitat is protected for these species.

Objectives

Find new sites for the six invertebrate species
Develop a community of volunteers who monitor the six species populations
Work with landowners and land managers to manage land enabling these species to thrive.
Learn more about the behaviour and habitat needs of each species

Key Dates

July to October: discovered 21 pine hoverfly larvae - the most endangered of the six species
August: found the first recorded nesting site of small scabious mining bee in the Cairngorms
Located three additional new sites for small scabious mining bee
New site discovered for shining guest ant by volunteer

Planned Work

There will be volunteer training days running for each of the species over spring and summer of 2018. Keep up to date on our Facebook and Twitter pages to find out about opportunities

Results

So far, the project has been very successful in finding new sites for some species and rediscovering others at sites they used to live in. We have also been mapping suitable habitat with volunteers to plan for surveying next year and to understand the potential spread of these key invertebrates in the national park.