In May 2013 the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden released 240 critically endangered American burying beetles (ABBs) at the nearby Fernald Nature Preserve. Thanks to careful planning on behalf of Zoo, the Fernald staff, and volunteers, the release went smoothly. We had several successful broods when we went back to check on them a couple weeks later. You can read all about that here.
The Cincinnati Zoo is excited to announce that it is planning on doing another release this year! In early July staff will be releasing another group of ABBs at Fernald. This will be the second of at least five years of releases planned at this location. This species only occurs in about 10% of its historic range. Our hope is that methodic reintroductions like what we hold at Fernald will have a positive impact on the overall habitat range of this animal.
On June 21st 2014 from 10:00am-12:00pm, at the Fernald Preserve visitors center, I will be giving a presentation all about this beetle’s life cycle and its recovery program. This is free, open to the public, and you’re all invited! Please join us for what’s sure to be an interesting look at a very unique animal’s life cycle. The first part of this presentation will take place in the community meeting room, after which we will take a short hike out into the field where we will check a pitfall trap and talk more about this beetle’s natural history. I’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have about the beetle or the reintroductions. Hope to see you there!
Is this considered an experimental population or is it afforded protections under Section 7 ESA? Never knew this was going on. Very cool!