Ladybird Spider on Springwatch

In 1980 a chance discovery was made right here. This small patch of land turned out to be the last refuge of a species previously thought to be extinct and had not been seen in the UK since 1906. Only seven individuals were found in an area the size of a tennis court - the small solitary colony needed help thanks to heroic conservation efforts I have the chance to meet Britain's most elusive

spider

, the Lady Bird

spider

, the jewel in the crown of these heaths Ian Hughes has dedicated the last 23 years of his life to saving this species With its unique spider relocation program I in this me module, it collects individuals from their burrows and moves them to form new breeding colonies.

They may be one of the most distinctive spiders in the UK, but because they spend almost all of their lives underground, they are virtually impossible to find. I'm looking for just a small sort of spider silk sheet that would stretch between the moss outside the ear. This really is not easy. I found one, Gillian, okay, here we go, my goodness, that's mmm, spectacular work, isn't it? spectacular is that you found it, oh my God, you know what I respect this man, I respect because it is not easy to find, this is a nice big network, so it is almost certainly a large female, that part is also the winter network.

To last at this time last year you will have sealed the net for the winter and then in the spring you will start it, that is why it is so important to inspect at this time of the fall because they are preparing to be sealed and you need to get to them sooner to To save the species, Ian has two who with incredible care remove the spider from its burrow, which can be up to 20 centimeters deep. He'll take out the top of the net, that's all the comfortable blanket of him that goes in. with it he could smell her silk, he knows it's his home, he starts building there, it's okay if he separates himself from that and then I think it's a very slow process, settling into it is a meticulous process since each and every one of the Spiders are so beautiful that Ian blows gently.

The last of the ground reveals the buried treasure, so she comes, oh you know, it's so nice where things are not so good but even better than I expected, she is absolutely stunning, she is so beautiful, velvety, absolutely elegant, Midnight blue, oh absolutely. all after 20-odd years I am still just as excited. I can see why you do this at four years old. This large female is mature and with Ian's help she will produce the next generation. She's fine, I think we should put her in the pot, no. You, I think so, when she is ready with the security blanket at the base, he will take the spiders' vital statistics before rehousing her with the rest of his web in this plastic bottle.

She will spend the winter here with the other spiders she has collected before being released into a new secret location. In the spring of '35, this method has increased the number from just seven to over 2000, but for a healthy population you need females and males, this bottle is a mature male ladybug spider, would you like to sing to him what I like to see? Yes, of course, that's right. you can take control from here two minutes until you notice your experience oh he just knows he's beautiful okay my first and probably only male ladybug spider. There are people who have written entire books about the spiders of the world and I have never seen this.

And if I'm honest, I feel a little excited because this is the weirdest place. Ladybug spiders may remain painfully rare, but with people like Ian on their side, I hope their future is secure.