Lincolnshire Biodiversity Partnership

Little pond skater makes it big at BioBlitz

The diminutive Little Pond Skater was just one of 565 species of flora and fauna discovered at the Lincolnshire BioBlitz event.

More than 100 people took part in the fifth annual BioBlitz at the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust Headquarters, Banovallum House in Horncastle. On Friday 9 July and Saturday 10 July, naturalists and members of the public spent 24 hours searching for and identifying as many different species as possible.

Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust Public Relations Officer, Rachel Shaw, said: "We are delighted with how many species were recorded during the event. In 2010, the International Year of Biodiversity, it is a timely reminder of how much biodiversity lives in our towns and gardens."

The Lincolnshire BioBlitz is organised by the Lincolnshire Biodiversity Partnership, Lincolnshire Naturalists’ Union and the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust.

The grounds of Banovallum House are about the size of a rugby pitch and we managed to find and identify 565 different species in just 24 hours. All together, a total of 961 different species have been recorded in the grounds of Banovallum House. Many of these are species that are all around us but without making a special effort to look we just don’t notice them.

Highlights of the discoveries made at the BioBlitz included:

• The little pond skater (Gerris argentatus) a pond dwelling insect with long legs that walks on the surface of the water. Not previously seen at Banovallum House, this species is very rare in Lincolnshire and nationally.
• The wasp Cleptes semiauratus, only 6mm long, metallic blue, red and orange, and parasitic on sawfly larvae. It is nationally scarce and previously only recorded in Lincolnshire on three occasions.
• 161 species of moth, 91 of which that hadn’t previously been recorded at Banovallum House.
• Four species of bat: common pipistrelle, soprano pipistrelle, daubenton’s and noctule.

Thanks go to all those who generously gave their time to volunteer at the event.

For the full story go to the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust website.

Beach © C Collop

Coastal Processes Workshop 9th June 2010

A successful coastal processes workshop was organised by LBP's Coastal and Marine BAP Habitat Group on 9 June 2010. The workshop was an excellent opportunity to see coastal processes in action and discuss the implications for Lincolnshire of national, regional and local coastal/marine policy; including beach nourishment, Shoreline Management Plans and the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.

The day was held at Saltfleetby-Theddlethorpe Dunes National Nature Reserve with 18 representatives from organisations such as the LBP, Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, Natural England and Wash Estuary Strategy Group attending. The day was spent learning about the history of the Lincolnshire coast, processes at work and the changes that have occurred on the beach, marsh and sand dunes, as well as discussing current threats and opportunities.

The workshop also included a look at the natterjack toad rearing pools where efforts are being made to expand and improve the health of one of the only two remaining populations in Lincolnshire.

Saltmarsh © C Collop

Claire Ludgate, Marine Adviser for Natural England said: "I found it a very useful day; it was great to get out and see the local coast and learn about its history and dynamics from some very knowledgeable people".

Thank you to David Robinson, John Walker and Nick Tribe for leading the discussions.