Restocking of Graphoderus bilineatus
LIFE EREMITA has scored a major success with the reintroduction of the water beetle Graphoderus bilineatus in three small lakes in the Northern Apennines.
During the summer of 2020, the pandemic emergency of Covid-19 had severely hindered the ongoing collaboration activities of sampling and restoking of the species at European level. To overcome the possible stall of the reintroduction activity, a more nuanced investigation of the species’ presence in Italy has been conducted.
The monitoring of the nature reserve of Pian di Spagna – SAC-SPA IT2040042 in Lombardy, previously known site of presence of G. bilineatus (but unconfirmed for over 20 years) not only confirmed the presence of the species but it also allowed for the collection of founders to be used for the repopulation of a small lake in the North-eastern Apennines in Emilia-Romagna.
This surprising result has been coupled with another outstanding outcome stemming from the collaboration with the research group of Dr. Uldis Valainis - Director of the Institute of Life Sciences and Technology at Daugavpils University, that during the month of August 2021 sampled several individuals of G.bilineatus from 10 different localities, natural reserves and parks in Latvia.
Thanks to the planning of an effective 
transportation method, the collected founders have been successfully shipped to Italy, allowing for their reintroduction in two additional lakes in the North-western Apennines.