The outdoor macrophotography exhibition ‘LIFE BEETLES: The Little Big Ones’ has already been installed in the Municipal Garden of Lajes das Flores and was inaugurated on 22 April by the Regional Secretary for the Environment and Climate Action, Alonso Miguel.
LIFE BEETLES is a nature conservation project coordinated by the Regional Secretariat for the Environment and Climate Action and 55% co-financed by the European Commission.
LIFE BEETLES aims to improve the population size, distribution area and conservation status of three endemic beetle species: Tarphius floresensis, on the island of Flores; Pseudanchomenus aptinoides, on the island of Pico; and Trechus terrabravensis, on the island of Terceira.
This exhibition aims to show the public a different side to insects, trying to change the negative perception often associated with them. It focuses not only on the project’s three target species, but also on other endemic insects that are unique to the Azores, and, in some cases, exclusive to the islands where they occur.
It also aims to raise awareness of the importance that these living beings play in nature, whether through pollination, seed dispersal or the decomposition of organic matter, as well as in human life, contributing to food, clothing and even health. Any disturbance can cause imbalances with ecological, environmental and economic consequences. Because of their essential role in ecosystems, insects are fundamental to maintaining the natural balance.
Macro photography exhibitions in the context of entomology are rare at the international level. In the Azores, this is only the second time an initiative of this kind has been held, and the first on the island of Flores with photographs of insects at this level of detail and quality. The exhibition will be displayed in the Municipal Garden of Lajes das Flores until June.
At the end of your visit, you can leave your opinion via a short survey, accessible via the QR code on the exhibition’s main totem pole or via the link https://forms.gle/fPh8k5suBqkhkrKB7.
