Rediscovery of the endangered species Harpalus flavescens (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in the Loire River

1. The Loire River is one of the last European large rivers with important sediment dynamics and numerous sandbanks. The extraction of sediment from the riverbed during decades and the construction of levees for flood prevention have strongly affected and shaped the biodiversity of the Loire River. 2. Many species from pioneer riverbanks have been impacted with particular consequences for psammophilous insects. The ground beetle Harpalus (Acardystus) flavescens (Piller & Mitterpacher, 1783), is considered to have disappeared from the Middle Loire River for 40 years and is endangered everywhere in Europe. 3. In 2012 and 2013, we recorded two specimens of H. flavescens in R egion Centre-Val de Loire (France), in the course of a survey dedicated to evaluating the impact of fluvial maintenance operations upon sediment and biodiversity dynamics. 4. The presence of H. flavescens may be linked to the interruption of riverbed extractions and the vegetation removal of sandbanks of the Loire River (ecosystem restoration).