A population of the Gallic walking branch (Clonopsis gallica) has been discovered in the Netherlands, reports EIS Knowledge Center on Friday Nature Today. This species actually only occurs in the center and west of France.
How the insect ended up in the Netherlands is unknown. The “surprising” arrival is currently considered a natural phenomenon by the knowledge center for insects and other invertebrates. The Gallic walking branch is therefore possibly the first walking branch that occurs naturally in the Netherlands in the wild.
Possibly eggs from the Gallic walking branch were brought to the Netherlands by insect-eating migratory birds. If the birds hatch the eggs, a part can still hatch. The walking branches can survive because their habitat has become larger due to climate change.
There is also a chance that the Gallic walking branch, which is also kept as a pet, has been released or escaped. Another scenario is that eggs have been taken with the import of plants. Because the Gallic walking branch reproduces asexually, one specimen can independently create an entire population.
Population location remains secret
Where the population is found in the Netherlands is deliberately not disclosed. In this way it must be prevented that the few hundred Dutch enthusiasts who grow walking branches go in search of the Gallic walking branch in the Netherlands.
That is why it is only stated that it is “a nature reserve that resembles habitats elsewhere in Europe”. Jinze Noordijk from the knowledge center tracked the animals after he saw photos of the European walking branch on the internet. They were made in 2008, 2017 and 2018.
–
–
–
–
The Gallic walking branch is originally only found in France. (Photo: Jinze Noordijk)
Population size not known
Last year Noordijk and a group of entomologists spent hours looking for the Gallic walking branch. They found four of them. The precise size of the population is unknown because the animals are difficult to observe. Noordijk therefore does not dare to make an estimate.
“I can say that there was a lot of distance between the animals that we observed,” says Noordijk. “The largest distance was 350 meters.” The site managers are looking at how the Gallic walking branch can be protected.
Noordijk emphasizes that the Gallic walking branch is no exotic. “It’s just a European species,” he says. “It is not an animal that does not belong in our ecosystem. It is just as warm here today as it was in France years ago.” In addition, the Gallic walking branch also has natural enemies in the Netherlands.
– .
