Nebria salina

Bare-footed Heart-shield Nebria salina

The following set were found in pitfall traps and comprised the majority of beetles in one trap. Having only identified brevicollis before I was doubting myself throughout, but then the contents of the next pitfall trap, from just 2-3 fields away, contained mostly brevicollis so I had a good opportunity to compare. Even so, the differences were not easy to see - the tarsal hairs on brevicollis could sometimes be rather difficult to see with one or two individuals initially misidentified on this character leading to confusion in interpreting the elytral microsculpture. However, once I had sorted them out accurately according to tarsal hair presence or absence, the difference in microsculpture was surprisingly obvious (with 60x magnification, top lit). I could just about make out differences in the marginal beads of the pronotum but looking at an insect in isolation I'm not sure I would find this character helpful - maybe with more experience that will become easier.

11x Bare-footed Heart-shields Nebria salina showing tarsi, elytral microsculpture and pronotum beading on some (in all cases these photos immediately following the photo of the entire insect they relate to), Wendling Beck Environment Project (Norfolk, UK), 29th October-2nd November 2022

These two were in a pitfall trap together with a single Nebria brevicollis. The first of these showed really clear miscrosculpture but the second was less coarse and harder to see. However it definitely had the short rounded pattern of salina.

2x Bare-footed Heart-shields Nebria salina showing tarsi and elytral microsculpture (in both cases the tarsi and microsculpture photos immediately follow the photo of the entire insect they relate to), Wendling Beck Environment Project (Norfolk, UK), 29th January-3rd February 2023

Prior to these the only Nebria I had identified were brevicollis, but given my initial struggles identifying these, only really resolved when I was able to compare both species side by side, I wondered if any of my previous identifications might be erroneous. Checking my photos I realised that this was indeed the case. For the following individual I had a good enough photo of the microsculpture to see that it was in fact salina, not brevicollis as I identified it at the time.

Bare-footed Heart-shield Nebria salina, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows (Norfolk, UK), 9th May 2021