Post by saye on Dec 7, 2015 11:27:59 GMT -8
Hello beetle-side of the forum, I would like to ask for general tips in finding Europe's largest beetle, Lucanus cervus. Not the adults though.
What I am looking for in particular, is learning how to identify places where larvae can be found feeding. Specifically, I want to know if this can be done in a forest that is mostly constituted of Quercus robur (but also in some spots Q. suber), Ilex aquifolium and Olea europea, along with some mantles of Hedera helix. I haven't located fallen oaks, nor those that have been cut under whatever forest management requirements; some trees have in fact been cut though, but I have some understanding of the ecology of this species, and thus that oaks cut in autumn are useless for larvae since they do not undergo decomposition by the certain species of fungi needed. The presence of the species in this area is inferred by the yearly couple of collected dead, male specimens.
I also understand that pretty much burying oak logs up to a meter will attract females for oviposition eventually (next summer, of course), but that's not what I'm after.
If, in providing tips, you need more information, including photos of the forest spots, please say so.
Thanks.
What I am looking for in particular, is learning how to identify places where larvae can be found feeding. Specifically, I want to know if this can be done in a forest that is mostly constituted of Quercus robur (but also in some spots Q. suber), Ilex aquifolium and Olea europea, along with some mantles of Hedera helix. I haven't located fallen oaks, nor those that have been cut under whatever forest management requirements; some trees have in fact been cut though, but I have some understanding of the ecology of this species, and thus that oaks cut in autumn are useless for larvae since they do not undergo decomposition by the certain species of fungi needed. The presence of the species in this area is inferred by the yearly couple of collected dead, male specimens.
I also understand that pretty much burying oak logs up to a meter will attract females for oviposition eventually (next summer, of course), but that's not what I'm after.
If, in providing tips, you need more information, including photos of the forest spots, please say so.
Thanks.
