It's a bug's life at Carr Lodge as nearly 400 species of invertebrate identified

The Land Trust is celebrating following the results of a survey which identified a total of 372 species of invertebrate on site at Carr Lodge.

The findings are even more remarkable given the incredible transformation of the space over the last few years.

Working in partnership with the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, the Land Trust took ownership of the eight hectare nature reserve in 2012. Back then it was overgrazed by horses and had precious little wildlife value.

Since then the site has been turned around in impressive fashion. The Trust removed the grazing animals, while Yorkshire Wildlife Trust gradually introduced more sensitive stock grazing. The water levels have been managed through the introduction of a gravity fed pump system and the vegetation has been left to recover, which has seen the invertebrate population thrive and ground nesting birds return.

The survey was undertaken between June and August 2019 and concluded that Carr Lodge was of high invertebrate interest, with the site supporting a wide range of habitats which encourage invertebrates to thrive.

Some of the species recorded include the calliphorid Angioneura acerba (blowfly) which is rarely recorded in Britain and has Data Deficient status. In addition a number of other rare or rarely recorded species were also recorded including the picture-winged fly Myopites apicatus.

The huge progress made at the site was previously recognised at the Land Trust annual awards in 2018 when the site picked up the accolade of Nature Space of the Year.

Alongside the vast array of invertebrates Carr Lodge also supports Great Crested Newts, Badgers and Water Voles while Yellow Wagtails and waders (including Redshank and Lapwing) have returned to the site to breed.
Land Trust director of portfolio management, Alan Carter, said:

“When the Land Trust took over the management of Carr Lodge back in 2012 we could see the potential the site had but significant work needed to be done.

“Working with our managing partners, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, the site has now become a real haven for wildlife which has been fantastic to see. The results of the invertebrate survey provide further evidence of the real tangible progress that has been made and we look forward to seeing how it develops further in the future.”