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Helpline for Larvae and other queries
If you have a problem with larvae that have just been disturbed, first, bear in mind that the larvae don't relocate well, the reason being that they are rather fragile, see below.
![Larval incident. Photo by Maria Fremlin, April 2010 Larval incident. Photo by Maria Fremlin, April 2010](larval_incident_2010_04_19.JPG)
Larvae soon after being relocated: dark larvae are dead. Photo by Maria Fremlin, April 2010.
Summary: Lucanus cervus: 2 alive, 8 dead; Dorcus parallelipipedus: 1 alive; Cetonia aurata: 2 alive, 1 dead.
Also, generally, they don't tolerate a change of diet. The fact is that in order to digest any goodness out of rotten wood the larvae have developed a very complex digestive system, their guts are a fermenting vat full of fussy micro-organisms, hence they don't take well to being moved. For more visit How stag beetle larvae feed.
Therefore I hope that some of the following suggestions will help you solve your problem as soon as possible.
- Ideally you should put the larvae back and leave them alone. They are probably already doing an excellent job for you by eating away the wood.
- If that is not possible then try to replicate their habitat in a shady corner and leave it so that the larvae can complete their development undisturbed.
- However if none of the above applies, place the larvae in a bucket with soil and a bit of the stuff that they were feeding on, cover it and place it in a shaded area. Then seek help locally as soon as possible.
- Or else contact me as wherever possible I would like to visit the site.
Status:
Stag beetles (Lucanus cervus) are listed under Annex II of the EC Habitats Directive and Appendix III of the Bern Convention. Protected in the UK under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended.
For their status in other countries visit:
Current status of the stag beetle (Lucanus cervus) in Europe.
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