BBC Wildlife - UK 2020-07)

July 2020 BBC Wildlife 27

WILDNEWS

IN NUMBERS

150

yearsaftertheywentlocally

extinct,largeheathbutterflies

arereturningtopeatlandsin

GreaterManchesterthankstoa

Wildlife Trustsreintroduction.

6

wildwhitestorkchickshave

hatchedintheUKforthefirst

timeincenturiesatKnepp

Estate,WestSussex,aspart

of abreedingproject.

87

beaverswereshotunder 16

licencesand 83 beaverdams

wereremovedunder 19 licences

in2019,accordingtoa Scottish

Natural Heritage report.

NEW SPECIESDISCOVERY

FINDOUTMORE

Zoosystematicsand Evolution

bit.ly/3gKAmfq

WHATISIT?Thisstrikingnew

speciesofvenomouspitviper(a

groupthatgetsitsnamefromthe

heat-sensitivepitslocatedbetween

theeyesandthenostrils)canbe

distinguishedfromitsrelativesby

thered-orangestripesthatrunthe

full length of the body in males.

WHEREISIT?Threespecimensof

Tr i m e r e s u r u ss a l a z a rwerespotted

coiledupamongstroadsideshrubbery

duringanexpeditiontoArunachal

Pradesh,northeastIndia.Thespecies

hasbeennamedafterSalazarSlytherin,

fictionalco-founderofHogwartsSchool

ofWitchcraftandWizardryandspeaker

of the language of serpents. SB

Salazar’s

pit viper

Spider: MD Kern/Palo Alto JR Museum/NPL(captive); viper: Aamod Zambre & Chintan Seth/Eaglenest Biodiversity Project/Creative Commons

T

hewell-publiciseddeclineininsect

populationsis havingknock-on

effectsupthefoodchain,accordingto

new research showing a startling drop

inoneofEurope’smostwidespread

andfamiliarspidersoverthelastfour

decades.Theresearch,conductedin

Switzerland,foundthatthegardencross

spider– theclassicorbwebspinner– was

about 140 timesmoreabundantinthe

1970sand’80sthanit is now.

Themostextensiveandup-to-date

estimateforthedeclineinterrestrial

insectsworldwidesuggeststhattheyare

disappearingata rateofnearlyoneper

centperyear,or24 per cent over the

last 30 years.

“Thismusthaveconsequencesfor

spiders,birds,bats,et cetera,sinceflying

insectsarethemajordietformanyof

thesecreatures,”saysMartinNyffeler

oftheUniversityofBasel,wholedthe

spiderwork.“Dueto thefactthatthe

numberofinsectsfoundinspiderwebs

is muchlowernowadayscomparedwith

40 yearsago,I amveryconfidentthat

insectdeclineis theproblem.”

Nyffelersaysthatsimilarsurveysare

nowneededinotherpartsofEurope,

includingtheUK,andonotherspeciesof

spider,to testwhetherthisis more than a

local effect.Stuart Blackman

FINDOUTMORE

Insectsbit.ly/3cmhS1n

Atangledweb

ofinvertebrate

declines

INSECTS

A characterinJ K

Rowling’sHarry

Potterbookseries

inspiredthename

of this new species.

Asinsectpreydisappears,

theonceabundantgarden

crossspiderhassuereda

dramatic population decline.