Cicindela hybrida explores its habitat flying but mostly running quickly which makes it not so easy to take pictures of. The light spots on its shields do facilitate locating it. One is sure to find it on a sunny day, on a dry, hot sandy spot with little or no vegetation. It prefers ants and other insects for food.  

Predator: Ciconia ciconia (Ooievaar) or White stork 

Prey: Bufo bufo (Gewone pad) or Common toad

Predator: Ciconia ciconia (Ooievaar) or White stork 

Prey: Bufo bufo (Gewone pad) or Common toad

Host: Betula spec.
Parasite: Fomitopsis betulina (Berkenzwam) or Birch polypore

Fomitopsis betulina is a fungus which grows on Betula spec. 

Often this will be a dead Betula spec. specimen, making the fungus a saprophyte. However, Fomitopsis betulina can also be seen on a living tree, in which case the fungus acts as a parasite.

Parasite: Ichneumonidae spec (larva) (Gewone sluipwesp) or Parasitoid wasp

 

Parasite: Ichneumonidae spec (larva) (Gewone sluipwesp) or Parasitoid wasp

 
In this Naturalis document, although it is in Dutch, pictures will clearly illustrate the story to the interested foreign language reader. Sensitive souls beware! ;-) 

Belgium being such a small country (approx. 30.500 km2), and considering the fact that I was not the only Belgian student, I decided to limit my action radius for my BioArea by describing a personal nature project I had launched in the area where I have lived for the last 30 years. This is about the Zuider-Kempen, South-Kempen. It is mainly a sandy region i.e. a very mineral-poor and dry soil, once widely covered with planted Pine spec. bordered by the river Dijle and its alluvial plains. However no inundations are taking place in these plains any longer because of the heightening of its banks.

 

Compared to the species-rich area’s I have been able to witness in other students’ padlets, my BioArea is limited.  The colourful, wide-horizon landscapes pictured and described by other students are often abundant with species, or are even hotspots. 

Man-made and ecological processes have turned my BioArea into a small-scale forest. Biota from green spots from the wider rural area have shifted into the once hayland. However, this recently created ecosystem is threatened by increased urbanization, fragmentation, small scale and climate change effects.  My BioArea has become an isolated habitat, an entirely different ecosystem compared to is original state, as is illustrated below .
Below:  a postcard from the collections of the local museum "Bonheiden - Heemkring 't Hoefyzer - VZW Rijmenam", showing my BioArea in 1914.

Biodiversity in my BioArea is poor, compared to other BioAreas that have been described. 

 

There are three key reasons:
-  the geographic location: this is a small fragmented area squeezed between the village and the river Dijle;
- two historic aspects: (a) this was originally a hayland ecosystem; (b) the hayland was abandoned following a chemical pollution, leading to degradation of the site.

 

This latter (abiotic) factor led to the extinction of the local specific hayland fauna and flora populations. 

 

The ensuing afforestation which is still prevailing, lead to a new composition of fauna and flora, differing markedly from the earlier age-old hayland ecosystem. It did provide variability in the environment and caused changes in biodiversity. Easily dispersing native bush and tree species have migrated into the area as well as an (originally) mysterious alien species. Along with these plants other biotic factors such as phytophagous insects increased biodiversity. In spite of the small size of the area, the species now present thus do show biodiversity in their four-layered composition manifesting species evenness.

However, another abiotic factor is threatening the structural and functional diversity in this area: decreased precipitation and subsequent lack of groundwater causing a dry soil layer may lead, again, to extinction of this recently established succession.

Similarities with other BioAreas

I was happy to see that some species from my area inter alia Columba palumbus (Wood pigeon) (Houtduif) were present in faraway areas such as Pakistan as Mishkat illustrated.