To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what steps are being taken to ensure that there is (a) sufficient water available at Pashford Poors, Suffolk and (b) high water quality at the Lewes Levels, East Sussex to ensure the survival of the (i) Pashford pot beetle and (ii) Sussex diving beetle; (118688)

Little is known of the Pashford pot beetle, other than that it is associated with wetlands. During the last century it was recorded from various sites in the Norfolk Broads and Lincolnshire fens but, since 1910, it has been known from only a single site, Pashford Poors Fen in Suffolk. It has not been seen since 1986.

Pashford Poors Fen is probably not an ideal location for this species, as it comprises a series of small wetlands in a matrix of dry Breckland grassland. The area has not been subject to the extensive sallow scrub invasion that the beetle needs, and may be too small to support a thriving population.

A study in 2006 found that, in Britain, the Sussex diving beetle, Laccophilus poecilus (also called the Puzzled Skipper), has mainly been associated with grazing fen in richly vegetated ditch margins. However, this species can also occupy a wide range of stagnant habitats. Occasional captures of specimens in Yorkshire suggest that there is as yet an undiscovered colony.

The RSPB has recently acquired a large area of land at Lewes Levels, which includes the last known recorded locality for this species. Over a year ago a site visit was undertaken by representatives from the RSPB, Natural England and the Aquatic Coleoptera Conservation Trust to determine what site management could be carried out for the species. The issue of water quality was also raised. It was considered that the construction of on-site water bodies (ponds) that were not linked to the main water system of ditches (and hence isolated from eutrophication) would be beneficial.

Circumstance permitting, it is expected that the RSPB will undertake work to create suitable ponds in the near future.

Overall, however, the primary conservation goal is to establish the Sussex diving beetle's exact status and locality. This will help to inform decisions about the most suitable steps to be taken to conserve this species.