Beetles threaten tracts of moorland
13 December 2000
Beetles threaten tracts of moorland
By FWi staff
VAST tracts of moorland are under threat from an insect population explosion triggered by warmer weather, reports The Times.
Rising numbers of small heather beetles, Lochmaea suturalis, are devastating upland farming by eating huge areas of heather in northern Britain.
Infestations have been reported in the South Pennines, the Peak District, Yorkshire Dales, North Pennines and the Borders.
According to latest figures from government countryside advisors English Nature, up to a quarter of the 670,000 acres of moorland is affected.
- Northern heather moorland increasing, FWi, 14 August, 2000
- Moorland regeneration aids flock improvement, FARMERS WEEKLY
- The Times 13 December 2000 page 13
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