Summary details for Diplocephalus graecus (O. P.-Cambridge, 1872)

Distribution

This species was first recorded from Betteshanger in Kent on an abandoned coal mine spoil-heap in 2008 (Dawson et. al. 2011). It has since spread widely in Kent and is also recorded from Essex, Herts., Surrey and Sussex. In Europe it was originally confined to the Mediterranean region but since the 1990’s has spread rapidly northwards, recorded on the Belgian coast in 2002 (Bonte et al., 2002). It seems reasonably likely that it will spread further in the future, at least in the South-East.

Habitat and ecology

In the UK this is almost entirely a grassland species but is not confined to a single type and can be found, for example, along grassy rides in woodland as well as in more open situations. Unlike most other species of the genus, it is not normally restricted to the ground layer but can be swept from the field layer as well. It has also been collected from a reed bed at Stodmarsh in Kent and beaten from foliage of oaks at Farnham Heath in Surrey. On the continent it has been recorded from a much wider habitat range, from Mediterranean maquis to open woodland, sand dunes and arable fields.

Status

No formal status has been assigned to this species as yet but given its wide habitat spectrum it seems unlikely to be threatened.