During the summers of last year and this year, we conducted biological monitoring on seventeen photovoltaic power plants across the Czech Republic, focusing on plants and animals, especially insects and other arthropods. Using sweeping nets, pitfall traps and targeted transect walks, we have so far recorded and identified more than 8,000 arthropods. Among them we documented, 28 butterfly species, 14 hoverfly species, and more than 100 species of true bugs and spiders. Notable findings include the spiders Haplodrassus minor and Zelotes electus, the butterfly Lycaena dispar, the hoverfly Neoascia podagrica and one of the first records of the true bug Acetropis longirostris in Bohemia. Aesthetic representatives of carabid beetles such as Carabus auronitens and Carabus scheidleri are also worth mentioning. Our results show that, under propper management, photovoltaic power plants can host ecologically interesting and conservation-relevant species. We are currently working on detailed monitoring reports (insects, plants and birds) and on recommendations to support biodiversity at the surveyed power plants. We are also preparing a methodological handbook summarizing how to effectively promote biodiversity in photovoltaic power plants without conflicting with safety regulations within the facilities.
We thank Photon Energy Operations CZ s.r.o. for their collaboration!
Supported by the TA ČR project: Optimising biodiversity support for solar parks in the open countryside (SS07020239).
