Day 233 - Cracking Cardinals

Cardinal Beetle (Pyrochroa Serraticornis)

Hey everyone Day 233 and today I'm continuing with my nature ramble at the wonderful Stavely Nature Reserve. We hadn't been for a couple of months and had been disappointed to see that the feeders had been taken down next to the hide. We used to love sitting there looking at the Yellowhammers, Water Rail, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Long-tailed tits, even the rats!  They made the decision to take the feeders down because it was costing too much to keep filling them up. We know all about that! The birds in our garden are so greedy my mum sometimes fills the feeders up 2 or 3 times a day! And that's just in a small garden, so it must get eaten even quicker at a special place like a nature reserve. So they need donations in the stone cairn at the start of the walk. I hope they get enough to be able to start it up again. I'm thinking of doing something and get sponsored to raise some money for them, even a few pounds will help.

So, here are the facts:

• Their Latin name is Pyrochroa Serraticornis and their common name (the Cardinal Beetle) is probably named after the Cardinals who wore red.

• They are a medium sized beetle at around 20mm with long, black antennae and their shells are a deep red colour.

What's this then?

• There are two species of cardinal beetle in the UK. The Black-Headed (pictured) and the Scarce which is only really found in some parts of Scotland and Wales. The Scarce is much smaller at around 9mm.

• Blackheaded Cardinal beetles are found all over Britain.  They are found mostly in woodlands around hedgerows during May to July where they are often seen sunbathing!

• They are found in Farmland, Woodlands, Towns and Gardens and grasslands.

• Cardinal Beetles are predatory insects and feed on other insects. Their bright red colour makes other animals believe that they are toxic.

Oh is that all!

• They can be easily confused with Scarlet Lily Beetle but there is a way to tell them apart. They are more round and their wing cases have dimples on them.

Here are some links to some more information:

Wikipedia - Cardinal Beetles

The Wildlife Trusts - Cardinal Beetles

Nature Spot - Cardinal Beetles

UK Safari - Cardinal Beetles

Hope you enjoyed,

Z.