 Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) Dorset, 2006 |
European Exotic and Introduced Miscellaneous CreaturesStick Insects
Prickly - Acanthoxyla geisovii from New Zealand.
Smooth - Clitarchus hookerifrom New Zealand. Unarmed - Acanthoxyla inermis from New Zealand. European - Bacillus rossius from the Mediterranean Acanthoxyla prasina from New Zealand. Another species Clonopsis gallica from New Zealand has been introduced on to Jersey. The five species, Acanthoxyla prasina, unarmed, prickly, Mediterranean and smooth are found in small colonies in Cornwall. All derived from pets the mild climate has allowed them to persist. A few colonies also exist in other parts of the country. Tresco Gardens is a hotspot, they are widespread on the Scilly isles and SW Cornwall.
LadybirdsHarlequin Ladybird - Harmonia axyridisA highly invasive species first recorded in East Anglia in 2004, it has quickly spread and is present in most on England south of Lancashire / Yorkshire and has not yet reached the South West. As its name suggests is comes in 24 differnt colour forms From mostly black to mostly orange to mostly yellow with lots of forms inbetween.
CrayfishSignal Crayfish - Pacifastacus leniusculusOne of five species introduced to the UK, the Signal crayfish is the most distinctive and most disruptive. Originally introduced for food it quickly escaped and has out competed the native species and carrys a fungus which kills the native species. Found on most waterways. Other species are not as widespread or disruptive
Noble crayfish - Astacus astacus
Yellow Tailed Scorpion- Euscorpius flavicaudisThey arrived by hitching a ride on ships and were found at several docks, the Sheerness colony has been in existant since the 1960's. The last surviving colony is at Sheerness, which despite my best efforts I have been unable to gain access to.
Chinese Mittern Crab- Eriocheir sinensisFirst recorded in the River Thames in the 1930s, possibly arrived in ships ballast water, originally from the far east they have no competitors in the UK so have recently dispersed and numbers have risen. in ships from the Far East. Native to China and Korea, the species took a long time to become established, possibly because of the river's polluted state. Since the early 1990s, however, numbers have mushroomed. The crab, which can travel over dry land, has now spread to many other English rivers hot spots are the Thames, Humber and Tyne and the east coast.
Monarch- Danaus plexippusIntroduced to Southern Spain and Portugal and possibly the Canary Islands but this may have been a natural colonisation.
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 Prickly Stick Insect (Acanthoxyla geisovii) Cornwall, 2006 |
 Unarmed Stick Insect (Acanthoxyla inermis) Cornwall, 2007 |
 Smooth Stick Insect (Clitarchus hookeri) Cornwall, 2007 |
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