One of the UK’s most elusive insects, the New Forest cicada (Cicadetta montana), has been reintroduced to Britain for the first time in decades.
Eleven females were brought from France to a new home in Hampshire, marking a major step in efforts to restore this long-lost insect to its native habitat.
Once common in the New Forest, the species hasn’t been seen in the wild since the 1990s.
Known for their high-pitched song, which only males produce, New Forest cicadas spend most of their lives underground as nymphs before emerging briefly in summer to mate.
Adults are black with distinct golden rings and see-through wings. Females grow to about 5cm – males are slightly smaller.
Scientists at the Species Recovery Trust hope the new arrivals will breed successfully, laying eggs in raspberry canes and hazel saplings in a specially designed enclosure at Paultons Park, near the edge of the New Forest.
"This has been a really challenging project so it's amazing to see New Forest cicadas in England after all this time,” says Charlotte Carne, project officer at the Species Recovery Trust. “It's like bringing them back from the dead.”
The team enlisted a French entomologist to collect the insects from woodlands in northern France.
On 12 June, the cicadas were carefully released into enclosures planted with their preferred host plants. If they lay eggs and these hatch successfully, the nymphs will burrow underground for at least four years. That means it will be 2029 at the earliest before scientists know whether the reintroduction has worked.
This pioneering work is part of a broader plan to bring cicadas back to their original range in the New Forest.
While climate change has played a part in their past decline, today’s warming temperatures may now help the insects thrive. Changes to woodland management, in collaboration with Forestry England, are also designed to better support cicada habitats.
“We believe the New Forest cicada probably went extinct because of changes to the way land was managed,” says Species Recovery Trust director Dominic Price. “But we have worked with Forestry England to put the right kind of management in place.
"What’s more, we think that our warming climate could also favour their survival, so we are very hopeful that one day soon, cicadas will sing in the New Forest again.”
Natural England, the Swire Charitable Trust and the Valentine Charitable Trust are funding the work.
“This project represents a remarkable achievement, showcasing the dedication, innovation, and teamwork that made it possible,” says Graham Horton of Natural England. “After years of absence, we finally have New Forest cicada on English shores again.”
Main image: New Forest cicada reintroduction at Paultons Park. Credit: Pete Hughes
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