Insects - April 2008
1st Class Adonis Blue
Electric blue Adonis Blue Butterfly
1st Class Southern Damselfly
This stamp showcases the elegance of the Southern Damselfly
1st Class - Red barbed Ant
Red barbed Ant
1st Class - Barberry Carpet Moth
Barberry Carpet Moth
1st Class - Stag Beetle
Stag Beetle
1st Class - Hazel Pot Beetle
Hazel Pot Beetle
1st Class - Field Cricket
Hazel Pot Beetle
1st Class - Silver-spotted Skipper
Silver-spotted Skipper
1st Class - Purbeck Mason Wasp
Purbeck Mason Wasp
1st Class - Noble Chafer
This stamp features the iridescence of the Noble Chafer Bug.
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Insects - Action for species
15 April 2008
Many insect species are endangered, but thanks to work by conservationists, their future is brighter. To draw attention to their plight and spread the good news, Royal Mail has issued a stunning set of Insect Special Stamps chosen from collections at the Natural History Museum.
1st Class Adonis Blue
Lysandra bellargusA brilliant, sky-blue butterfly, found only on south facing downland slopes in southern England. It has declined since the 1950s, partly due to myxomatosis in rabbits, and inappropriate grazing, as it needs close-cropped turf, where Horseshoe Vetch the caterpillars foodplant grows. Since the recovery of the rabbit population in the last 20 years, the butterfly too has made some recovery.
1st Class Southern Damselfly
Coenagrion mercurialeThis delicate species resembles several other closely related, far commoner blue damselflies, but its habitat requirements are specific. It only occurs near streams on open heathland and less often chalk, with a relatively high constant temperature. It is on the north-western edge of its range in Europe but the loss of suitable habitat by shading out, drainage and nutrient enrichment have contributed to its decline in the past 40 years.
1st Class Red-barbed Ant
Formica rufibarbisMainly an open heathland species, which nests below ground or beneath stones. First discovered just over 100 years ago, this ant has always been regarded as rare but has declined further as lowland heaths have been destroyed, it now occurs on just 2 mainland sites and 1 on the Scilly Isles.
1st Class Barberry Carpet Moth
Pareulype berberataThe large-scale removal of the larval foodplant, Barberry, once regarded as an agricultural pest species, as it harbours wheat-rust fungus, led to a dramatic decline of this once widespread moth. In the 1980s it was reduced to just one locality but the reintroduction of Barberry and of captive bred moths has reversed the decline.
1st Class Stag Beetle
Lucanus cervus This is our largest land beetle, which reaches a length of 75mm, but only the male that has the impressive stags antlers, the females jaws being reduced to sharp pincers. Its larvae live for up to 4 years years, feeding on decaying wood below ground. Gardeners are encouraged to leave rotting stumps and branches in the ground, and to be less thorough in tidying up. Its distribution is fragmented throughout southern and south-east England, though its numbers have stabilised.
1st Class Hazel Pot Beetle
Cryptocephalus coryliRestricted to only a few sites in Surrey, Berkshire and Lincolnshire, this small beetle was once widespread in southern England. It lives on Hazel and young Birch trees and its decline is probably related to the reduction of Hazel coppicing in the south, and the removal of Birch from heathland in Lincolnshire.
1st Class Field Cricket
Gryllus campestrisNever a common insect in Britain, the Field Cricket has declined through loss of habitat and now only occurs naturally in one population in West Sussex. Found on light sandy soil on sunny, south facing slopes, males proclaim their territories by making a penetrating chirrup at the entrance of their burrows. A captive breeding and release partnership between Natural England and the London Zoo has resulted in the establishment of several more colonies in southern England.
1st Class Silver-spotted Skipper
Hesperia commaThis butterfly thrives on close-cropped, south facing, chalk downland, but in the past 50 years these habitats and the butterfly have declined drastically. The lack of grazing and myxomatosis in rabbits has also resulted in too deep a sward, which affects breeding success, however, management of many sites and the recovery of rabbits in the last 20 years has led to some re-expansion.
1st Class Purbeck Mason Wasp
Pseudepipona herrichiiThis small, attractive wasp is now restricted to just 7 heathland sites in Dorset, which are fortunately all in, or close to, Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). The female makes her nest in a hole below ground, which she provisions with Tortricoid moth caterpillars for her larvae to feed on. Areas of bare clay soil amongst the heather, where the wasp can burrow, are essential for breeding, and the management of suitable sites is now being undertaken to prevent the shading-out of suitable heathland.
1st Class Noble Chafer
Gnorimus nobilisA beautiful metallic green beetle, related and similar to the Rose Chafer, most likely to be seen on warm summer days on the flowers of various umbellifers. It occurs in old orchards and open woodland where the larvae live for up to two years, in the decaying branches, mainly of old fruit trees. Due to the removal of old orchards, it has declined seriously and is now found only in parts of central and western England and the New Forest.
| Feature | Type/Detail |
|---|
| Number of stamps | Ten |
| Design | Andrew Ross |
| Photography | Natural History Museum London |
| Stamp Format | Square |
| Stamp Size | 35mm x 35mm |
| Printer | De la Rue Security Print |
| Print Process | Lithography |
| Number per Sheet | 30/60 |
| Perforations | 14.5 x 14.5 |
| Phosphor | Background screen |
| Gum | PVA |
