Snowdon Beetle: a little living jewel
You’ll be lucky to spot a Snowdon Beetle – but if you do, you’re unlikely to forget it. About the size of a ladybird, what this tiny, thyme-eating creature lacks in stature, it makes up for in dazzling colour. Its wing cases are striped with iridescent bands of red, gold, green and blue, so it’s easy to see why it’s also called the Rainbow Leaf Beetle. Living elusively under stones and rocks, there are thought to be only 1,000 adults in the UK – all in just a handful of spots across Snowdonia. And sadly, crumbling paths will not help in the recovery of this tiny population. If we can repair those paths with more resilient building methods and materials, we can stop shifts and changes in their habitats, and give this little gem of an insect a better chance of survival.