The aim of the British Dragonfly Society is to promote and encourage the study and conservation of dragonflies and their natural habitats, especially in the United Kingdom.
What's New
Latest changes include updated Diary page, notice of the BWPA 2010 photographic competition (below), an important request for feedback from our users (see below), an updated List of Recorders accessed from the Recording pages, several new photos of Azure Hawker, Emerald Damselfly, Winter Damselfly, Banded Darter, Variable Damselfly, Vagrant Darter, and 4-spotted Chaser added, some updates to the Shop page, added a link to the Odonata pages at James Cook University (Australia) which has .pdf copies of Tilyard's and Corbet's books on the Biology of Dragonflies, report on the opening of the new Dragonfly Centre at Wicken Fen (see below).
British Wildlife Photography Awards
Win a prestigious award, up to £20,000 worth of prizes and exposure in a nationwide touring exhibition and accompanying book.
The damselfly photo on the right won this award last year. Why not try entering this prestigious competition? Some details and a link to the relevant website follow below.
After a successful first year and widely acclaimed photographic exhibition celebrating British wildlife, the BWPA announce the launch of their second competition, open for entries from the 21st January.
Established to celebrate and recognise the talents of photographers of all nationalities practicing in the UK, while at the same time highlight the great wealth and diversity of British natural history, BWPA are looking to build on recent successes and are introducing several new categories. This includes a special award for conservation photography and a category dedicated to British biodiversity and native species under threat, to reflect the fact that 2010 has been declared International Year of Biodiversity, by the United Nations.
The competition is OPEN from 21st January and the closing date is 4th June 2010. Entrants will be able to submit entries on-line or via post.
For more detailed information about the competition, including how to enter, a full description of categories, shooting tips, and terms & conditions, please visit the competition website: www.bwpawards.org.
Sponsored by Natural England, the government adviser on the natural environment.
BDS Strategy - We need your help
The British Dragonfly Society (BDS) has started drafting a 5-year strategy document. This will help our membership, our other supporters and our funders to have a clearer idea about what our Society has already achieved, its overall aims and its plans for the future. We would value your input into this strategy document, so please could you give us your views on the following questions. We are hoping for plenty of responses, so it would be appreciated if you could be as concise as possible.
- What do you feel is currently good about the BDS and what needs improvement?
- What sort of Society do you think the BDS is now and what sort of Society would you like to see in five years time? For example, more scientific, high profile, conservation focused, education focused or other (please describe).
- Are there any new initiatives that the BDS should be pursuing? What do other similar societies do, which we could match?
- Many people interested in dragonflies are not BDS members, so how can we attract more members?
Please email your answers to Steve Prentice, the BDS DiF Officer, at stephen.prentice@naturalengland.org.uk or post them to him c/o Natural England (West Midlands), Parkside Court, Hall Park Way, Telford, TF3 4LR
So that we can incorporate your views into our discussions, please send your responses by Friday 5th February 2010 at the latest.
Our New Dragonfly Centre is open
Thanks to everyone who joined our celebrations on Sunday July 26th as TV presenter and naturalist Chris Packham opened the new Dragonfly Centre at the National Trust nature reserve at Wicken Fen in Cambridgeshire. There were excellent speeches at the official opening, reminding us of the importance of conserving dragonflies and how much can be achieved by working in partnership. Chris then lead a walk round the reserve, which culminated in a visit from a Brown Hawker to wow the crowds!
The BDS and The Dragonfly Project are grateful to the National Trust for their support for this project. The Dragonfly Centre aims to show people that dragonflies are fascinating, beautiful and in trouble, and that everyone can help.
The Centre is based in a newly renovated cottage. Inside, amongst other items, there are displays and interpretation material with information about dragonflies and the BDS. Outside, the cottage is surrounded by a garden which has not one, but two ponds created especially for us to our own designs, to show visitors how they can help dragonflies in their own gardens. The centre will open as often as possible throughout the summer, and perhaps by appointment at other times.
Admission to the Centre is free but there are admission charges for the National Trust Reserve.
The National Atlas Project
The National Dragonfly Atlas Project was launched in April 2008. The aim of this project is to update the known distribution of British dragonfly and damselfly species over the next 5 years, culminating in the publication of a new national atlas in 2013.
A new national atlas is urgently required. Climate change is contributing to increasingly earlier spring emergence and change in the range of a number of our species. In addition, new species are becoming established in Britain, as demonstrated by the recent rapid spread of Small Red-eyed Damselfly. We are living through a dynamic change in our dragonfly fauna and need to record this information, thereby providing evidence for future assessment of the impact climate change and other environmental factors are having on our dragonfly fauna.
To succeed in this ambitious project good national coverage is needed. The more volunteers that get involved, especially in the traditionally under-recorded areas of Scotland, Ireland and northern England, the more information on the status of our dragonfly and damselfly species can be gathered. This will not only allow the production of a high quality national atlas but also provide a good baseline of information that can be used for the future benefit of dragonfly conservation.
Find more details of this important new project and how you can help by visiting the National Atlas page.
The Key Site Project
The key site project aims to develop an agreed set of national criteria that may be applied to determine key dragonfly and damselfly sites throughout Britain.
This project will help to determine sites important for maintaining breeding populations of nationally or locally important, or a high diversity of damselfly and dragonfly species. By being based on information readily gathered using the RA83 recording card, it is hoped that this will promote the recording of evidence of breeding and abundance of dragonfly species and contribute towards increasing monitoring of species and identification of key sites throughout the country.
Find more details of this important new project and how you can help by visiting the Key Site Project page.
Exuviae - your help is requested
The BDS is in the process of setting up an exuviae collection that will be for use by the members. The idea is that there will be ten sets for each species, consisting of one male and one female of each species on the British List. A set (i.e. a male and a female) of each species can then be borrowed from the society, so for example you can check you exuviae against known examples. Some photos from the collection are now available on the species pages of the web site.
We are still building the exuvia collection so can I please ask you to collect exuviae that you come across during the summer especially for the following species and send them to David Goddard 30, Cliffe Hill Avenue, Stapleford, Nottingham, NG9 7HD.
Don't worry if I get more than is required for a particular species the exuviae will be kept as spares with the possibility of an exchange system being set up in the future. I also know that some of the species are migrants but the BDS has members abroad where these species breed.
| Beautiful Demoiselle | Calopteryx virgo |
| Banded Demoiselle | Calopteryx splendens |
| Scarce Emerald Damselfly | Lestes dryas |
| Southern Emerald Damselfly | Lestes barbarus |
| Willow Emerald | Chalcolestes viridis |
| Red-eyed Damselfly | Erythromma najas |
| Small Red-eyed Damselfly | Erythromma viridulum |
| Dainty Damselfly | Coenagrion scitulum |
| Northern Damselfly | Coenagrion hastulatum |
| Irish Damselfly | Coenagrion lunulatum |
| Norfolk Damselfly | Coenagrion armatum |
| Azure Damselfly | Coenagrion puella |
| Variable Damselfly | Coenagrion pulchellum |
| Common Blue Damselfly | Enallagma cyathigerum |
| Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly | Ischnura pumilio |
| Blue-tailed Damselfly | Ischnura elegans |
| Small Red Damselfly | Ceriagrion tenellum |
| Azure Hawker | Aeshna caerulea |
| Brown Hawker | Aeshna grandis |
| Southern Migrant Hawker | Aeshna affinis |
| Lesser Emperor | Anax parthenope |
| Green Darner | Anax junius |
| Vagrant Emperor | Hemianax ephippiger |
| Hairy Hawker | Brachytron pratense |
| Golden-ringed Dragonfly | Cordulegaster boltonii |
| Downy Emerald | Cordulia aenea |
| Brilliant Emerald | Somatochlora metallica |
| Northern Emerald | Somatochlora arctica |
| Orange-spotted Emerald | Oxygastra curtisii |
| Common Darter | Sympetrum striolatum |
| Highland Darter | Sympetrum nigrescens |
| Yellow-winged Darter | Sympetrum flaveolum |
| Ruddy Darter | Sympetrum sanguineum |
| Vagrant Darter | Sympetrum vulgatum |
| Banded Darter | Sympetrum pedemontanum |
| Scarlet Darter | Crocothemis erythraea |
| Globe Skimmer | Pantala flavescens |
Slides and Digital Images wanted for the BDS collection
The BDS has a collection of slides and digital images that are used in illustrated talks on conservation. We welcome additional photographs to illustrate species, habitat, behaviour etc. to help us with this task. A list of subjects that we would like to add or expand upon is given below. Of course please feel free to send any other slide or digital image you think would be of interest.
When you send them can you please supply the following information - Species, Date and place where taken and Name of photographer.
These should be sent to me at: David Goddard, 30 Cliffe Hill Avenue, Stapleford, Nottingham, NG9 7HD; email - david.goddard8@ntlworld.com.
Orange-spotted Emerald Oxygastra curtisii male and female
Northern Emerald Somatochlora arctica female
Vagrant Darter Sympetrum vulgatum female
Highland Darter Sympetrum nigrescens male and female
Scarce Emerald Damselfly Lestes dryas female
Red-eyed Damselfly Erythromma najas female
Small Red Damselfly Ceriagrion tenellum female
Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly Ischnura pumilio female (normal form)
Northern Damselfly Coenagrion hastulatum female
Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum female
Irish Damselfly Coenagrion lunulatum female
Norfolk Damselfly Coenagrion armatum male and female
Dainty Damselfly Coenagrion scitulum male and female
Banded Darter Sympetrum pedemontanum male and female
Southern Migrant Hawker Aeshna affins male and female
Lesser Emperor Anax parthenope female
Green Darner Anax junius male and female
Vagrant Emperor Dragonfly Hemianax ephippiger female
Globe Skimmer Pantala flavescens male and female
Any teneral males or females
Any Dragonflies / damselflies in tandem
Any Dragonflies / damselflies in copulation
Any Dragonflies / damselflies ovipositing
Any Dragonflies / damselflies larvae
Any Dragonflies / damselflies emerging a sequence would be nice
Any Dragonflies / damselflies exuviae
Any Dragonflies / damselflies caught or being eaten
Any Dragonflies / damselflies feeding
Any Dragonflies / damselflies in mixed parings
Any Dragonflies / damselflies colour forms
Habitat shots
Field meetings
Site Awards
