Profile: Sarah Beynon

West Wales Biodiversity Information Centre Bulletin 2 by Kate Jones.

Sarah Beynon is a motivated and enthusiastic Coleopterist from St Davids, and the new editor of our monthly newsletter.

At 23 years old Sarah has studied beetles in Zambia and South America, as well as the UK. She has now started a Pembrokeshire beetle collection in her own laboratory.

Sarah grew up on the family farm in St Davids and spent her childhood helping out with the livestock. She attended primary and secondary school in St Davids and in 2002 went to Oxford University to study Biological Sciences. It was here, while helping out with the Hope Entomological Collections, part of the University's Natural History Museum that Sarah's interest in beetles was sparked. She went on to do her third year dissertation on beetles looking at the difference between ground beetle assemblages on organic and conventional farms. At the end of her third year Sarah applied for the Varley Gradwell Scholarship in insect ecology, her application was successful and after graduating in 2005 Sarah embarked on a 3 month research project on dung beetles in Zambia.

Since returning from Zambia Sarah's family have moved from the farm, although still keep 40 acres of prime beetle habitat which Sarah is trying to manage through Tir Gofal to improve species numbers, which she is constantly recording.  She is also looking at the effects of cattle wormers on dung beetles and the changing effects of land use on ground beetles. Sarah also works as a freelance entomological consultant, advising local farmers on habitat management.

Sarah has just returned from a trip to Central and South America. In Honduras she worked for Operation Wallacea as an entomologist, carrying out research on dung beetles, moths and jewel scarabs as well as teaching school and university students of the importance of beetles in the forest ecosystem. In Bolivia she assisted with a dung beetle project. Now back in the UK, Sarah is working as a freelance entomological and envoronmental consultant, and in her spare time is working her way through a freezer full of beetle specimens from across the globe with the aim of producing publications by the new year.