DNP ENJOY DARTMOOR 2024 digital - Flipbook - Page 33
Spotted on Dartmoor?
Africa has it’s ‘Big Five’ wildlife – on Dartmoor we have the little five!
Some are rare, some are secretive, all are fascinating…
© Ian H Leach
BLUE GROUND BEETLE
The blue ground beetle is one of the largest
and rarest beetles in the UK. It grows to nearly
4cm and has long legs and a distinctive metallic
blue colouring.
MARSH FRITILLARY
This medium-sized butterfly can be seen from midMay to the end of June in areas of wet grassland with
abundant devil’s-bit scabious (a flowering plant with
distinctive blue pincushion-like flower heads). The
caterpillars live in a protective web and feed on the
leaves of the scabious.
CUCKOO
© Adobe Stock
You will probably hear this bird before you see it.
They lay their eggs in the nests of other birds - on
Dartmoor mainly meadow pipits. The cuckoos that
spend summer on Dartmoor, over-winter in the
Congolese tropical rainforests.
OTTER
ASH BLACK SLUG
The world’s largest land slug can be found in
Dartmoor’s ancient woodlands and can exceed 20cm
in length! On damp nights the slugs emerge to feed
on fungi, lichens and algae and can be found on the
woodland floor or up trees.
Otters are nocturnal so you will need lots of luck
to spot one. Dartmoor’s rivers have always been
a stronghold for this species, even when they
became extinct in most of lowland England. The
otter is a conservation success and is an indicator
of a healthy river.
Read more about these interesting
creatures on our website:
ANSWERS 1. Native 2. Non-native 3. Non-native 4. Native
dartmoor.gov.uk
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