Beetle Dispersal Research Articles

Resource pulses drive spatio‐temporal dynamics of non‐native bark beetles and wood borers

Abstract Clear‐fell harvesting of non‐native plantation forests in the southern hemisphere creates large amounts of woody debris that is used for breeding by non‐native bark beetles and wood borers. Limited competition and a shortage of natural enemies allow some invasive pine bark beetles and wood borers to become highly abundant and cause phytosanitary issues. Replicated transects (550–750 m long) of funnel traps baited with alpha‐pinene and ethanol spanning even‐aged Pinus radiata stands were established in New Zealand's largest plantation forest and monitored from pre‐harvest until up to 5 years post‐harvesting to test the effects of harvesting residue resource pulses on the spatio‐temporal population dynamics of Hylurgus ligniperda, Hylastes ater and Arhopalus ferus. Generalised additive mixed model analyses of trap captures of >687,000 H. ligniperda, >7600 H. ater and >5000 A. ferus individuals showed greatly elevated populations for the first 2–3 years post‐harvest. Subsequently, populations returned to very low levels once the resource pulse was exhausted. Spatial patterns of captures reflecting beetle dispersal from breeding material showed a curvilinear decline along the breeding resource gradient by up to 95% from the interior of a recently harvested stand into an adjacent, previously harvested stand with exploited resources. Synthesis and applications. The results show that forest management characterised by ongoing harvesting of neighbouring stands facilitates the build‐up of large populations of bark beetles and wood borers of phytosanitary concern. This is due to recurrent resource pulses caused by the supply of substantial amounts of breeding material from tree felling. Our findings can inform forest planning aimed at avoiding such harvesting patterns, by assisting with the development and implementation of strategies for the management of beetle populations across the landscape. Most beetles dispersed <400 m beyond the source stand edge, although some beetles are likely to have dispersed further. Keeping a distance of 1–2 km between recently felled stands and those scheduled for felling would be expected to reduce rapid population growth. This knowledge can also be used to reduce seedling attack, minimise infestation of logs, and ultimately, mitigate pathway and biosecurity risks, with important implications for forest product exports and quarantine measures.

Predicting the dispersal and invasion dynamics of ambrosia beetles through demographic reconstruction and process-explicit modeling.

Evaluating potential routes of invasion of pathogens and vectors of sanitary importance is essential for planning and decision-making at multiple scales. An effective tool are process-explicit models that allow coupling environmental, demographic and dispersal information to evaluate population growth and range dynamics as a function of the abiotic conditions in a region. In this work we simulate multiple dispersal/invasion routes in Mexico that could be taken by ambrosia beetles and a specific symbiont, Harringtonia lauricola, responsible for a severe epiphytic of Lauraceae in North America. We used Xyleborus bispinatus Eichhoff 1868 as a study subject and estimated its demography in the laboratory in a temperature gradient (17, 20, 26, 29, 35°C), which we then used to parameterize a process-based model to estimate its metapopulation dynamics. The maximum intrinsic growth rate of X. bispinatus is 0.13 with a thermal optimum of 26.2°C. The models suggest important regions for the establishment and dispersal the states of Veracruz, Chiapas and Oaxaca (high host and secondary vectors diversity), the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (connectivity region), and Michoacán and Jalisco (important avocado plantations). The use of hybridprocess-based models is a promising tool to refine the predictions applied to the study of biological invasions and species distributions.

Patterns and impacts of an unprecedented outbreak of bark beetles in Central Europe: A glimpse into the future?

Natural disturbances have significantly intensified across European forests, with bark beetle outbreaks being the most rapidly escalating disturbance type. Since 2018, the Czech Republic (Central Europe) has become a Europe's disturbance epicentre due to the unprecedented outbreak of spruce bark beetle Ips typographus in the forests dominated by Norway spruce Picea abies. Here we provide novel insights into the impacts and dynamics of this disturbance from 2016 to 2022. The investigation is based on annual forest change maps developed by the classification of optical and Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite imagery. We identified seven major outbreak foci across the country, where the outbreaks culminated between 2018 and 2021. Most of the outbreak waves exhibited a symmetric shape, characterized by a three-year build-up phase, a single culmination year, and the subsequent decline. The substantial proportion of spruce remaining in the outbreak areas after the culmination point implies that resource depletion is an improbable cause for the outbreak's retreat. In the year of retreat, the proportion of spruce in the forest ranged between 26% and 36% in most of the outbreak areas. The disturbance dynamics manifested a transition from the emergence of new tree mortality spots in the early outbreak phase to their short-range expansion, suggesting density-dependent changes in bark beetle dispersal during the studied period. The core disturbance zone, pinpointed in 2022, covered an area of 9,000 ​km2 and experienced a 38% loss in forest cover. Within this area, forest fragmentation increased significantly, leading to a greater forest patch complexity and reduced connectivity among the patches. The presented findings can serve as a glimpse into the future for other European regions, revealing the potential impacts of natural disturbances amplified by climate change.

Tracking the push towards extinction: combining dispersal and management data to monitor Asian longhorned beetle eradication in the U.S.

Based on the threat posed by the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis Motschulsky), many countries including the United States have adopted policies of eradication. The eradication of infestations that cover hundreds of square kilometers can require multiple visual surveys of millions of individual trees. At these scales, eradication may take several decades and span multiple beetle generations. During this period the infestation of new trees adds spatially-explicit risk to the landscape while surveys and the removal of infested trees reduce it. To track dynamic risk on the landscape we have developed the Asian Longhorned Beetle Hazard Management and Monitoring Tool. The geospatial tool combines data documenting; the locations, levels of infestation, and dates of detection of infested trees; the locations, methods, and timing of survey and host removal activities; and a reconstruction of beetle movement within the infested landscape to generate annual spatial estimates of infestation risk based on the combination of beetle dispersal and survey and host removal activities. The analyses of three eradication programs highlight similar patterns in risk through time with risk peaking at the time infestations are detected and declining as management activities slow beetle spread and reduce risk through surveys. However, the results also highlight differences in risk reduction among the eradication programs associated with differences in beetle dispersal among infestations and the size of the infested landscape, highlighting the importance of applying local information to structure eradication programs. The Asian Longhorned Beetle Hazard Management and Monitoring Tool provides a quantitative repeatable approach to tracking changes in infestation risk using local beetle behavior and management efforts. In addition to this, the tool may provide a structure to optimize eradication efforts by allowing managers to estimate expected risk reduction based on proposed survey and host removal strategies.

Wrong landing on a non‐host occurs under the canopy of a host: The presumed path of the ambrosia beetle Platypus quercivorus to approach its host

Abstract The ambrosia beetle Platypus quercivorus is a vector of a pathogenic fungus that causes Japanese oak wilt. Its host is Fagaceae trees; however, these beetles also erroneously bore into unsuitable, non‐host tree species, which can be affected by neighbouring host tree species and the size of the non‐host. We attached sticky sheets to the host and non‐host tree species of P. quercivorus and counted the number of beetles that landed weekly, in a season of beetle dispersal. We quantified the density of the host canopy above, the basal area of surrounding hosts and the diameter at breast height (DBH) of each non‐host tree. The host canopy density affected the probability of beetles landing on non‐hosts, and the host basal area and non‐host DBH affected the number of beetles landing on non‐hosts. Thus, P. quercivorus is probably initially attracted to a dense host canopy, secondly attracted to the high density of the host and thereafter aggregate onto thick trees, including non‐host species. The number of beetles landing on the surrounding host also affected beetle landing on the non‐hosts, suggesting that landing on non‐hosts is an error that occurs in high frequency during the seasons when many beetles land on the hosts.

Nonparametric upscaling of bark beetle infestations and management from plot to landscape level by combining individual-based with Markov chain models

Linked to climate change, drivers such as increased temperatures and decreased water availability affect forest health in complex ways by simultaneously weakening tree vitality and promoting insect pest activity. One major beneficiary of climate-induced changes is the European spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus). To improve the mechanistic understanding of climate change impacts on long-term beetle infestation risks, individual-based simulation models (IBM) such as the bark beetle dispersion model IPS-SPREADS have been proven as effective tools. However, the computational costs of IBMs limit their spatial scale of application. While these tools are best suitable to simulate bark beetle dynamics on the plot level, upscaling the process to larger areas is challenging. The larger spatial scale is, nevertheless, often required to support the selection of adequate management intervention. Here, we introduce a novel two-step approach to address this challenge: (1) we use the IPS-SPREADS model to simulate the bark beetle dispersal at a local scale by dividing the research area into 250 × 250 m grid cells; and (2) we then apply a metamodel framework to upscale the results to the landscape level. The metamodel is based on Markov chains derived from the infestation probabilities of IPS-SPREADS results and extended by considering neighbor interaction and spruce dieback of each focal cell. We validated the metamodel by comparing its predictions with infestations observed in 2017 and 2018 in the Saxon Switzerland national park, Germany, and tested sanitation felling as a measure to prevent potential further outbreaks in the region. Validation showed an improvement in predictions by introducing the model extension of beetle spreading from one cell to another. The metamodel forecasts indicated an increase in the risk of infestation for adjacent forest areas. In case of a beetle mass outbreak, sanitation felling intensities of 80 percent and above seem to mitigate further outbreak progression.

Identification of genes and gene expression associated with dispersal capacity in the mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins (Coleoptera: Curculionidae).

Dispersal flights by the mountain pine beetle have allowed range expansion and major damage to pine stands in western Canada. We asked what the genetic and transcriptional basis of mountain pine beetle dispersal capacity is. Using flight mills, RNA-seq and a targeted association study, we compared strong-flying, weak-flying, and non-flying female beetles from the recently colonized northern end of their range. Nearly 3,000 genes were differentially expressed between strong and weak flying beetles, while weak fliers and nonfliers did not significantly differ. The differentially expressed genes were mainly associated with lipid metabolism, muscle maintenance, oxidative stress response, detoxification, endocrine function, and flight behavior. Three variant loci, two in the coding region of genes, were significantly associated with flight capacity but these genes had no known functional link to flight. Several differentially expressed gene systems may be important for sustained flight, while other systems are downregulated during dispersal and likely to conserve energy before host colonization. The candidate genes and SNPs identified here will inform further studies and management of mountain pine beetle, as well as contribute to understanding the mechanisms of insect dispersal flights.

The Evolution of Social Behaviour

The Evolution of Social Behaviour

Effects of natural and seminatural elements on the composition and dispersion of carabid beetles inhabiting an agroecosystem in Northern Italy.

The natural and seminatural components of agricultural landscapes play a key role in maintaining a high level of biodiversity. Being the Po Valley one of the most human‐dominated and intensively cultivated landscapes in Europe, we investigated the effect of no‐crop habitats on carabid richness and composition and evaluated the role of tree row as corridor for forest carabid dispersion. Carabids were sampled with 70 pitfall traps arranged in 35 sampling plots along three parallel transects (80, 100, and 140 m long) and encompassing five different habitats: tree row, tree row edge, grassland, forest edge, and forest. We found 5,615 individuals belonging to 55 species. Despite the similarity in species richness, all the habitats investigated showed a peculiar and distinct species assemblage. The main distinction was between the "open habitat" cluster composed of grassland and tree row edge and the “forest" cluster composed of forest, tree row, and forest edge. We found that forest species are able to penetrate the grassland matrix up to 30 m from the forest edge and that a distance of no more than 60 m between tree row and forest can allow the passage of up to 50% of the forest species. Beyond this distance, the grassland matrix becomes a barrier, preventing them from reaching other suitable habitats. Our findings confirm the importance of maintaining different types of natural habitats to significantly increase biodiversity in an intensively cultivated agroecosystem and demonstrated the role of linear elements as a corridor and “stepping stones” for many forest species.

Evidence for passive dispersal of ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in the Nearctic boreal forest

ABSTRACT Passive transport has likely contributed to the post-glacial dispersal of species in temperate regions. However, identifying such processes from patterns can be obscured by confounding environmental conditions. We studied the distribution of ground beetles in Ontario’s Far North, a vast (450,000 km2) and largely intact region, to identify mechanisms that aid in species dispersal when confounding factors, such as temperature, are controlled. We tested a model of passive, riverine dispersal using recent records of flightless and flighted ground beetles from 34 sites across the region. The number of species declined with distance from main watershed rivers, as predicted from our model at the site level. Contrary to expectations, this pattern was evident with flighted species but not flightless species. The opposite pattern, with flightless species displaying a decrease with increasing distance from river, was evident at a regional level. These patterns are consistent with ground beetles carried along rivers since glacial retreat. We surmise that northward dispersal of these invertebrates into the boreal forest has been aided by vegetation and other debris flowing down rivers, including soil from eroded banks in which larvae and pupae reside. Biogeographic inferences, although often subtle, can be supported by broad-scale studies of intact landscapes.

Spread of Dutch elm disease in an urban forest

A complex network model for the spread of Dutch Elm Disease in an urban forest is formulated. American elms are the focus of the model. Each elm can be in one of five states, a combination of their life and epidemiological status. Each tree is also potentially a host to a population of elm bark beetles, the vectors of Dutch Elm Disease. The epidemiological dynamics of trees is governed by a stochastic process that takes into account the dispersal of spore-carrying beetles between trees and potential contacts between tree root systems. The model describes seasonal variations of beetle activity and population dynamics. Numerical simulations and sensitivity analyses of the model are carried out. In this introductory paper, we use data from the City of Winnipeg, where Dutch Elm Disease is prevalent, and focus on two neighbourhoods representative of a residential area and an area with urban parks.

Disentangling landscape and local drivers of ground-dwelling beetle community assembly in an urban ecosystem.

Community assembly is the process by which local communities are organized and maintained from the regional species pool. Understanding processes of insect assembly are of interest in "shrinking" cities where vacant land has become abundant as a result of protracted economic decline and population loss. Vacant land represents a viable conservation space for insects such as beetles that contribute to ecosystem services including pest suppression, decomposition, and nutrient cycling. However, the inherent heterogeneity of cities may pose challenges for beetle dispersal from source populations, while quality of the urban environment may constrain establishment. The objective of this study was to investigate the constraints to ground-dwelling beetle community assembly in vacant lots and pocket prairies of Cleveland, Ohio using a functional trait-based approach. Functional traits with a strong predictive capacity for ecological functions were measured on beetle species collected via pitfall traps. Assembly of beetle communities was primarily constrained by dispersal limitations to colonization. Over 93% of species found within treatments were capable of flight, and functional diversity of beetle communities was higher across all treatments than expected by chance. Once beetles colonized, successful establishment was influenced by heavy metal contamination and mowing frequency, with these disturbances shaping communities based on body size, antennae length, and origin. Colonization of dispersal-limited species could be facilitated by increasing connectivity among greenspaces in cities, while establishment could be enhanced by managing local environmental conditions. Understanding how insect communities are structured in urban ecosystems provides context for observed patterns of biodiversity, advances conservation efforts, and fosters ecosystem services.

Afyonkarahisar İli Patates Alanlarında Patates Böceği (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)’nin Yayılışı

Çalışmada Afyonkarahisar ili patates alanlarında patates böceği (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)’nin yayılışı araştırılmıştır. Patates böceği üzerine yapılan bu çalışmanın amacı ülkemizde çokça yetiştiriciliği yapılan patatesin en önemli zararlılarından birisi olmasıdır. Bu nedenle, Afyonkarahisar ili; Merkez, Sandıklı, Emirdağ, Şuhut, Dinar, Çobanlar ilçelerinde her ilçeye dört kez gidilerek tarlalardan patates böceği bireyleri toplanmıştır. Buna ek olarak Afyonkarahisar ilinde patates böceğinin popülasyon değişiminin belirlenmesi amacıyla, Afyonkarahisar ili Bolvadin İlçesi merkezinde, aralarında 4 km bulunan iki patates tarlası (Erkmen ve Şıhlar mahalleleri) örnekleme alanı olarak seçilmiştir. Her hafta bu tarlalardan patates böceği bireyleri (yumurta, larva, ergin) toplanarak kayıt altına alınmıştır. Afyonkarahisar ili merkez ilçesinde kimyasal mücadelenin yoğun olarak uygulandığı patates alanlarında patates böceği bireylerine az miktarda rastlanmıştır. Erkmen mahallesindeki parselde toplamda 1165 yumurta bulunurken Şıhlar mahallesinde ise 556 yumurta elde edilmiştir. Bu iki patates tarlasında yapılan çalışma sonucu patates böceğinin popülasyon dalgalanmaları grafikler ile ifade edilmiştir.

Factors influencing dispersal by flight in bark beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae): from genes to landscapes

Dispersal by flight is obligatory for bark beetles in the subfamily Scolytinae. Adult bark beetles must leave the natal host and fly to seek new hosts for brood production. Because of the eruptive nature of some bark beetle populations, dispersal capacity has implications for beetle spread and invasion across the landscape. Bark beetle dispersal can occur over short distances within a stand or over long distances above the forest canopy, where wind aids dispersal. Despite the obvious importance of dispersal for predicting population spread, knowledge gaps in understanding factors that influence bark beetle dispersal remain. In this review, we synthesize information on bark beetle flight to gain a better understanding of this important life history trait. We assess the impact of genetic, physiological, and morphological traits on flight in different bark beetle species. We also consider the impact of abiotic and biotic environmental conditions on flight. We discuss how measurements of these factors could contribute to the development of comprehensive models to better predict spread of bark beetle populations. Through the synthesis of flight research on a variety of bark beetle species, this review provides suggestions for future avenues of research on this important aspect of bark beetle ecology.

How long are thinning-induced resource pulses maintained in plantation forests?

Despite the critical role of pulsed resources on the dynamics and conservation of several forest-dwelling species, the transition between the period when the effects of a thinning-induced resource pulse are maximal and the period when only residual effects remain has yet to be documented in forest habitats. In this study, we investigated the occurrence of a transition period after a woody necromass resource pulse produced by commercial thinning operations on flying coleopterans. In a large-scale manipulative study, spruce plantations were subjected to commercial thinning treatments and beetles collected using flight intercept traps during the four years that followed thinning operations. 82,062 beetles from 50 families and 242 species were recovered. For two years after thinning treatments, beetle communities differed in composition between thinned and unthinned plantations, species richness and abundance being higher in thinned areas. By the third and fourth year after thinning treatments, these differences started to fade, indicating that the transition period was occurring. This was associated with a decline in the quality of woody debris found close to or onto thinning trails. These results support our hypothesis that fine woody debris, such as those produced by commercial thinning operations, are attractive to beetles for a short period because they rapidly decay and are rarely colonized by wood-boring species, inhibiting further colonization by fungi and mycophagous beetles. Yet, despite a decline in abundance and species richness in thinned areas during the last two years of the study, thinned plantations still harboured richer and more abundant beetle communities than unthinned plantations, suggesting that thinning trails continue to improve beetle dispersal as the woody necromass resource pulse weakens.

Anisotropic dispersal by the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis): quantifying spatial risk and eradication effort with limited biological data

Once a breeding population of an invasive species has established in a novel environment, management efforts commonly focus on eradicating the species or limiting its spread. However, information describing the biology and behavior of an invading organism is often limited, highlighting the need to assess dispersal with incomplete information. Here we extend a previously described graph-theory-driven model of dispersal for the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis Motschulsky) to evaluate the impacts of three poorly documented biological and behavioral parameters on the spatial extent and distribution of dispersal risk in three breeding beetle populations under eradication in the United States. The parameters assessed include 1) whether beetles disperse from lightly/recently infested trees, 2) the presence and impact of anisotropic dispersal, and 3) the rate at which beetles emigrate from infested trees. The results suggest three key patterns. First, beetle behavior, i.e. dispersal from lightly infested trees, alters the dispersal kernel calculated for each of the infestations, though the effects of this parameter on the distribution of dispersal risk on the landscape is limited. Second, dispersal within each location was anisotropic (variable based on direction), and biases in dispersal direction varied among the three infestations. The incorporation of this anisotropy substantially altered the estimated distribution of risk within each landscape. Third, changes in the rate of beetle dispersal did not alter the perimeter of the landscape with dispersal risk but did alter the severity of risk within that perimeter. Higher rates of dispersal result in the need to mitigate larger portions of the landscape to achieve a given probability of eradication. These tools can aid in quantifying and comparing dispersal risk under varying assumptions of dispersal, and may help prioritize research on biological and behavioral parameters to facilitate management and eradication.

“The road to reproduction”: foraging trails of Constrictotermes cyphergaster (Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae) as maternities for Staphylinidae beetles

Corotoca (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) beetles are known for their close integration in the nests of the termite Constrictotermes cyphergaster (Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae). Although this relationship is regarded as ancient, many details are still obscure, such as their reproduction and the processes that lead to the dispersal of new beetles. We observed the use of termite foraging trails by Staphylinidae females to deposit and disperse their larvae. We recorded the deposition of larvae of C. melantho, C. fontesi, and C. sp. n. on the dorsal surfaces of termite host workers. The workers continue to follow the foraging trail until the newborn larvae freed themselves and fell into the leaf litter, subsequently burrowing into the ground. Information regarding the life stages of those Staphylinidae larvae outside the termite nest is important to understanding their full lifecycle as those taxa have strong relationships with the nest environment but also require dispersal strategies.

Dispersal behaviour of female stag beetles (Lucanus cervus) in a mosaic landscape: when should I stay and where should I go

Abstract Global habitat destruction is bringing species to the edge. Consequently, understanding species dispersal behaviour is becoming essential in order to safeguard vital meta‐populations. Nevertheless, dispersal is too often seen as unconditional rather than triggered by habitat cues. We applied radio telemetry on female European stag beetles [Lucanus cervus (L., 1758)] in a mosaic landscape to investigate the hypothesis that dispersal is habitat driven, in this case by canopy closure and presence of suitable dead wood, SDW. We found that the decision to disperse depended on canopy closure and that dispersal distance depended both on SDW availability and canopy closure. Long distance dispersal (by flying), in contrast to small distance dispersal (mainly walking), is shown to be a successful strategy to reach locations with lower canopy closure. We conclude that dispersal of female stag beetles is not unconditional but shaped by habitat resources. It is therefore likely that habitat also affects dispersal of other insects and should be considered in future dispersal studies. For the conservation of the European stag beetle, our results imply that it is essential to provide stepping stones of suitable dead wood, preferably every 100 m and not more than 1 km apart. These stepping stones should be provided in open to half‐shaded conditions. Management systems such as coppicing which provide periodic sun‐exposure and sufficient amounts of (underground) dead wood are good management procedures for conservation of the stag beetle but they need to be performed at small scales to ensure suitable habitat proximity.

Ecogeographic patterns in a mainland-island system in Northern Europe as inferred from the rove beetles (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) on Laeso island

Rove beetles (Staphylinidae) are used to explore the forces that shaped the terrestrial fauna on Laeso, a young ca. 3000 year old Danish oceanic island located in the Kattegat strait between mainland Denmark and Sweden. We compile a detailed list of species of rove beetles for Laeso (328 species) and the surrounding Danish and Swedish regions (altogether 1075 species), which includes a standardized inventory of their body sizes, and the habitat and microhabitat preference of each species. The composition of the fauna on Laeso and adjacent mainland regions points to North-Eastern Jutland as the main source of the rove beetles on Laeso. Although large beetles are more active and likely to disperse than small beetles, there is no bias towards large species on the island indicating that the sea separating Laeso from the mainland has not been a barrier for rove beetle dispersal. The statistical analysis of the habitat and microhabitat preferences of the species of the entire system studied has shown that Laeso, compared to the mainland areas, is distinctly more dominated by ecological generalists, especially by species adapted to ephemeral, temporary humid microhabitats. Presumably, the mosaic of mostly dry open habitats available on Laeso filters for species, that are able to populate these suboptimal habitats via patches of humid but ephemeral microhabitats. A comprehensive eco-faunistic dataset for the Staphylinidae compiled for this study is the first modern account of the rove beetle fauna on the Danish island of Laeso.

The pace of range expansion: a long-term study on the flightless ground beetle Carabus hortensis (Coleoptera: Carabidae)

Range shifts are predicted for numerous species due to climate change, and therefore understanding species dispersal is more crucial than ever. For some species, their low dispersal capabilities may prevent them from reaching new, suitable habitats, thus threatening their survival. This is of particular concern for those ground beetles which are flightless and depend on a specific type of habitat. However, studies on ground beetle dispersal rates are rare. We investigated the shift in distribution range of Carabus hortensis in northwestern Germany over a span of 22 years. We found that this species disperses on average 127 m per year with low variation between years. Although C. hortensis’ movement (locomotory) activity is not different or lower than that found in similar ground beetles, its dispersal rate is rather low. We speculate that this slow range expansion may be due to a long individual development time from egg to teneral and suggest that in the face of climate change, conservation actions, like assisted migration, may be an option for such slow dispersing species.