Bug Life Putting Welsh Bugs on the Map, y cyntaf yn y byd

Image Fen Raft Spider (Dolomedes plantarius) (c) Liam Olds

Wales has become the first country in the world with a map of its most important areas for insects and other invertebrates – a vital source of information to help guide nature recovery in Wales. Buglife – The Invertebrate Conservation Trust is launching the ‘Important Invertebrate Areas: Putting Bugs on the Map in Wales’ report at the Senedd today. The network of 17 Important Invertebrate Areas (IIAs) has been identified by the charity working closely with experts and using millions of records collected by naturalists.

Welsh Bugs Mapped

Wales is home to iconic and threatened species found nowhere else in Britain, such as the Cliff Mason Bee (Osmia xanthomelana) now only known from two short stretches of Welsh cliff top, and the Critically Endangered Scarce Yellow Sally Stonefly (Isogenus nebecula) which is only found in the River Dee and was once feared once being feared extinct.

The IIAs, which are home to nationally or internationally significant invertebrate populations and their habitats, took nearly five years to map. They cover 1,344km2 of Wales. Although this is just 6.5% of the country, they are home to over 10,800 species of invertebrate, including 7 of Britain’s endemic species – those found nowhere else in the world. The IIAs are also home to threatened species, including the stunning Blue Ground Beetle (Carabus intricatus), Britain’s rarest snail – the Glutinous Snail (Myxas glutinosa), and the Fen Raft Spider (Dolomedes plantarius)- our largest spider.

Buglife Cymru Manager, Clare Dinham, said, “Wales’ Important Invertebrate Areas, from the Ll?n Peninsula to the South Wales Coast, are home to some of our most special species. But many are under threat. We hope that the new IIA map will help people to learn about and celebrate their local wildlife. And also understand what they can do to help nature recover.”

Jamie Robins, Programmes Manager, said, “To secure a better future for our invertebrate populations and help nature to thrive, it is essential to know where our most threatened species live. We’ve started the job by mapping IIAs for Wales, but this is only the beginning. We need decision makers to recognise the important role that invertebrates play and use our IIAs to prioritise much needed conservation action.”

The full map of IIAs can be explored on the Buglife website, with freely accessible profile documents for each of the 17 IIAs that explain why they are important, the threats they face and what needs to be done to enable their special inhabitants to thrive.

Cymru yw’r wlad gyntaf yn y byd gyda map o’i ardaloedd pwysicaf ar gyfer pryfed ac infertebratau eraill – ffynhonnell wybodaeth hanfodol er mwyn helpu i arwain adferiad natur yng Nghymru. Mae Buglife – Yr Ymddiriedolaeth Cadwraeth Infertebratau yn lansio adroddiad ‘Ardaloedd Infertebratau Pwysig: Rhoi Pryfed ar y Map yng Nghymru’ yn y Senedd heddiw. Mae’r rhwydwaith o 17 o Ardaloedd Infertebratau Pwysig (AIP) wedi ei ddynodi gan yr elusen drwy weithio’n agos gydag arbenigwyr a gan ddefnyddio miliynau o gofnodion a gasglwyd gan naturiaethwyr.

Mae Cymru’n gartref i rywogaethau eiconig ac sydd dan fygythiad sydd ddim i’w canfod yn unman arall ym Mhrydain, fel Saerwenynen y Clogwyn (Osmia xanthomelana) sydd bellach ond i’w chanfod mewn dau safle bach ar ben clogwyni yng Nghymru, a’r pryf cerrig prin Isogenus nebecula sydd Mewn Perygl Difrifol, sydd ond i’w gael yn Afon Dyfrdwy ac yr ofnwyd ei fod wedi diflannu am byth.

Cymerodd yr AIP, sy’n gartref i boblogaethau o infertebratau o bwys cenedlaethol neu ryngwladol a’u cynefinoedd, bron i bum mlynedd i’w mapio. Maent yn cwmpasu 1,344km2 o Gymru. Er bod hyn yn ddim ond 6.5% o’r wlad, maent yn gartref i dros 10,800 o rywogaethau o infertebratau, yn cynnwys 7 o rywogaethau endemig Prydain – rhai sydd ddim i’w cael yn unman arall yn y byd. Mae’r AIP yn gartref hefyd i rywogaethau sydd dan fygythiad, yn cynnwys y chwilen ddaear Carabus intricatus hardd, y Falwen Ludiog (Myxas glutinosa) sef malwen brinnaf Prydain, a Chorryn Rafftio’r Ffen (Dolomedes plantarius) – ein corryn mwyaf.

Dywedodd Clare Dinham, Rheolwr Buglife Cymru, “Mae Ardaloedd Infertebratau Cymru, o Ben Ll?n i Arfordir De Cymru, yn gartref i rai o’n rhywogaethau mwyaf hynod. Ond mae llawer ohonynt dan fygythiad. Ein gobaith yw y bydd y map AIP newydd yn helpu pobl i ddysgu am a dathlu eu bywyd gwyllt lleol. A deall hefyd yr hyn allan nhw ei wneud i helpu adferiad natur.”

Meddai Jamie Robins, Rheolwr Rhaglenni, “Er mwyn sicrhau dyfodol gwell ar gyfer ein poblogaethau infertebratau a helpu natur i ffynnu, mae’n hanfodol gwybod ble mae ein rhywogaethau sydd dan fwyaf o fygythiad yn byw. Rydym wedi cychwyn ar y gwaith trwy fapio AIP yng Nghymru, ond dim ond megis dechrau yw hyn. Rydym angen i’r bobl sy’n gwneud penderfyniadau gydnabod y rôl bwysig y mae infertebratau’n eu chwarae a defnyddio ein AIP i flaenoriaethu camau gweithredu cadwraeth cwbl angenrheidiol.”

Gellir archwilio’r map llawn o AIP ar wefan Buglife, gyda dogfennau proffil cwbl hygyrch ar gyfer pob un o’r 17 AIP sy’n egluro pam eu bod yn bwysig, y bygythiadau y maent yn eu hwynebu a’r hyn sydd angen ei wneud i alluogi eu trigolion arbennig i ffynnu.

Buglife is the only organisation in Europe devoted to the conservation of all invertebrates our aim is to halt the extinction of invertebrate species and to achieve sustainable populations of invertebrates. Invertebrates are vitally important to a healthy planet – humans and other life forms could not survive without them. The food we eat, the fish we catch, the birds we see, the flowers we smell and the hum of life we hear, simply would not exist without bugs. Invertebrates underpin life on earth and without them the world’s ecosystems would collapse. www.buglife.org.uk

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