"Gwynedd"
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9th March 2004
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| DATE: |
ANIMAL: |
LOCATION: |
| 23rd October
1998 |
SNAILS |
Not Known |
| May 2002 |
CATTAPILLAR |
Abergwyngregyn |
SNAILS
‘Extinct’ Snail Alive In
Welsh Lake.
A
species of snail thought to be extinct has been found alive and well in a
Welsh Lake...The 6mm glutinous snail, so-called because of the jelly-like
gills covering its shell, was last seen in Lake Bala, or Llyn Tegid, in 1953.
It was thought that the snail had fallen victim to pollution or the lowering
of water levels on the lake caused by the building of sluices. But studies
for the Countryside Council for Wales and the Snowdonia National Park Authority
have found a healthy population around the edges of the lake in recent weeks.
John Steel, of the Environment Agency, said that the snails were still very
vulnerable to pollution. The discovery would spur on the search for other
populations.
The glutinous
snail is in decline across Europe. It is one of more than 170 species in the
Governments Biodiversity Action Plan to save endangered plants and animals.
23rd
October 1998
The Times
Contributed
by:
Mark Fraser
Scottish Big Cats.
www.scottishbigcats.org
Abergwyngregyn
CATTAPILLAR
Rare 'Death's Head' caterpillar
found
A rare death's head hawk
moth caterpillar has been discovered chomping on potato plants at the University
of Wales' research centre outside Bangor. Potato researchers at the centre
in Abergwyngregyn spotted the large, brightly-coloured caterpillar devouring
potato leaves in a plot of experimental plants. The
moth, featured in the Silence of the Lambs film starring Anthony Hopkins as
Hannibal Lecter, is named after the characteristic skull and crossbones on
its back. The four-inch moth is the largest ever found in the UK and is rarely
seen here. It is more commonly found in southern Europe and north Africa.
"A few adult moths are found each year in UK as illegal immigrants
but the caterpillars are almost never seen," said Dr David Shaw
of the research centre. "It is not known to breed here as the pupae
do not survive our cold winters. "Our staff have removed the caterpillar
from the trials for safe keeping and have named it Frederick. "But we
will not know if it a Fred or a Freda until it pupates and emerges as a moth,"
he added. "We continue to feed it with copious quantities of potato
leaves so that it can complete its life cycle."
Bee hives
Dr Shaw and his colleagues are part of the Sárvári Research
Trust, based at Henfaes Research Centre in Abergwyngregyn. Luckily,
the group's research technician, Debbie Evans, is also Moth Recorder for Gwynedd,
so the moth's presence has been officially recorded.
A death's head hawk moth
was found on an industrial estate in south Wales in May 2000. Wildlife experts
were delighted to discover the moth at the Queensway Meadows Industrial Estate
in Newport, Gwent - the first time in 16 years it had been seen in the county.
It is known to enter bee hives
to feed on honey where it emits a loud squeak like a queen bee.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/north_west/3147749.stm
Contributed
by:
Mark Fraser
Scottish Big Cats.
www.scottishbigcats.org
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