Every single one of our fieldwork activities is awaited with great eagerness to go out in the field in search of our favorite insects. The saproxylic beetles were rather active this time around, filling our entomological traps. With great pleasure and joy we share our success in finding the rare and elusive Osmoderma eremita, a European endemite with a priority conservation status. Other joyful finds included Herophila tristis, Dorcus parallelipipedus, Morimus asper, Cerambyx cerdo, Aegosoma cf. scabricorne, Rutpela maculata, and Hylotrupes bajulus, which sparked our enthusiastic spirit to identify their species. The end of our final fieldwork activities is nearing, and the cold rainy winter days will be filled with plenty of lab work as well as further knowledge building regarding this diverse group of beetles.
Cleaning samples from field work
Examining beech trunks by hand
Organizing the collected material
Dorcus and Osmoderma species
