Alexandra chafer beetles
THE ENDANGERED Cromwell chafer of Central Otago (Forest & Bird, November 1991) has a number of relatives slightly to the south. Like the Cromwell chafer, the flightless Alexandra chafers Prodontria modesta (pictured) and P. bicolorata, have very limited distributions and so are vulnerable to human activity. The town of Alexandra is growing and natural chafer habitat is being converted into, among other things, orchards and airport runways. Otago University PhD student Brent Emerson has
been studying the genetics, distribution and ecology of the two chafers since August. He has found that they continue to be abundant even in depleted and degraded areas. However, they are not uniformly present and local extinctions have occurred. Land modification continues around Alexandra, so there is certainly no room for complacency. Brent Emerson recently received a research grant from the J. S. Watson Trust administered by Forest and Bird for his work on the chafers.
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/FORBI19920201.2.6.3
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Forest and Bird, Volume 23, Issue 1, 1 February 1992, Page 2
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152Alexandra chafer beetles Forest and Bird, Volume 23, Issue 1, 1 February 1992, Page 2
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