Protecting hermit beetle (Osmoderma Sp). habitats

Project “Hermit beetle habitats” was carried out in Poland by the Elbląg Upland Landscape Park and the local forest authorities. The project focuses on protection of the habitats of insect, including protected Osmoderma Sp., against devastation in construction areas. It was commissioned by Warmińsko-Mazurskie Region to mitigate the effects of road reconstruction works in the landscape park area.
Habitats for Osmoderma Sp. can be found in the trees that have to be removed during road maintenance or reconstruction. The growth cycle of the Osmoderma Sp. inside the stem lasts 3 - 4 years. In the case of construction work, it is not possible to postpone the works and wait until all the insects are out of the habitat. In the given year, only 4-year-old insects will leave the habitat and the rest will still be in the larval stage. Cutting down a tree causes irreversible damage to the beetle environment. Therefore, replacement habitats were developed.
The whole process takes a few months. For this purpose, during autumn, rotting wood microhabitat with larvae is taken from the trunk of the tree and transferred during winter to a new, specially prepared place. The relocated trunks are installed in places with similar conditions to those where the tree originally grew. Then the trunks are secured with roofs against rain and a net against small mammals. In spring, rotting wood microhabitat with larvae is transferred to those previously prepared, new habitats.