Ground Beetles of Ireland
Bembidion monticola
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 © Roy Anderson |
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Bembidion monticola Sturm, 1825
Description: 4.5-5mm long black ground beetle with greenish-blue reflections and pale appendages. Found at the margins of running water in shaded conditions. Local, mainly in the north.
World Distribution: A European Boreal-montane species (43) which is coincidentally almost absent from the Boreal biome, but is justified in the present class as a mountain species in all but the northern parts of its range. Found locally in mountains across west and central Europe to the Caucasus, but apparently rare in Fennoscandia with a single verified population in southern Finland.
Irish Status: Very locally distributed in upland areas, mainly in the northern counties and in Kerry. Its preference for deep, shady glens may limit its potential range.
Ecology: Confined for the most part, to bare or sparsely vegetated, fine sand on wooded, highland streambanks. The protection of undisturbed wooded streambanks from river engineering would appear to be essential to its survival.