Ancistrocerus quadratus (Panzer, 1799)
Synonyms
Ancistrocerus claripennis (Thomson, 1874)
Description and notes
Spooner (1973) introduced this species to the British list giving characters to separate it from Ancistrocerus parietum (Linnaeus) and A. gazella (Panzer). Identification keys and general biology are given in Nielsen (1932), Spradbery (1973), Felton (unpublished), Richards (1980) and Yeo & Corbet (1995).
Distribution
Recorded from four 10 km squares in Devon (1958-69), one 10 km square in Herefordshire (pre-1859), two 10 km squares in Leicestershire and one 10 km square in Nottinghamshire (1905-44).
Overseas, found in many parts of Europe (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, The Netherlands, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Poland, Austria, Albania, Ukraine, Bulgaria).
Status (in Britain only)
Listed as Rare (RDB3) in Shirt (1987) and Falk (1991). However, with no post-1970 records its status should be reviewed.
Habitat
Unknown, but probably found in a wide variety of habitats including sandy and clay soils, river banks, coastal areas and open urban, parkland and wooded areas.
Flight period
Probably univoltine; from the few records available, adults have been found from May until September.
Prey collected
Lepidoptera larvae.
Nesting biology
A tube-dweller. Nests have been found in an old razor case, the folds in a piece of paper, the bore of a flute and on a shelf behind some books.
Flowers visited
Species of angelica and probably sea-holly, bramble, hogweed and thistles.
Parasites
Probably Chrysis species as in other species of Ancistrocerus.
Year profile last updated
1998