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 an updated List of Recorders, a comment from the BDS about the recent collection of a specimen of Southern Migrant Hawker (see below), a copy of the press release about the recent discovery of Dainty Damselfly in Kent (see below) and new photos and updates to the Dainty Damselfly species page, photo of C. armatum added, announcements (below) about the White-faced Darter re-introduction project and Smallshire and Swash 2nd edition photographic Dragonfly field guide, events added to the Diary page, new items on the Shop page, a revised Recording page with the RA83, Instructions for Recorders, latest copy of "Darter" newsletter and a link to the newly released Online Recording System (see below), a revised and updated version of the BDS booklet "Dig a Pond for Dragonflies", new links on the Links page, report on the opening of the new Dragonfly Centre at Wicken Fen (see below).
Southern Migrant Hawker collected
Southern Migrant Hawkers, including ovipositing pairs, have been found in Essex and Kent in recent weeks (see 'Hot News'). There have been only four previous records of this species in Britain. It has come to our notice that one of up to ten present at Hadleigh Country Park, Essex, was collected on 3rd August. The BDS had no prior knowledge of the individual's intent, but has now fully investigated this incident.
The individual concerned has written to the BDS and admits collecting the Southern Migrant Hawker, but had no idea it would upset so many people. He now realises that he has transgressed the Members' Code of Practice on collecting dragonflies and has offered to resign his membership of the BDS. He has also offered his most sincere and humble apologies to the BDS and to everyone else he has offended by his actions. As a result of this incident, he has decided to put away his net forever and take only his binoculars into the field with him in future. The BDS hopes that others who might be tempted to consider collecting dragonflies, other than for valid scientific purposes in line with the Code of Practice, will take note of the adverse reaction that this incident has generated. This statement and the apology above from the gentleman involved should bring this matter to a close.
Extinct Damselfly re-discovered in Britain after 57 years
Dainty Damselflies have been found in Britain after a 57 year absence. This delicate blue damselfly had been declared extinct after floods wiped out the last remaining populations in East Anglia in 1953. The recent sightings of four adults in North Kent made by Gill and John Brooks have been verified by the British Dragonfly Society.
As its name suggests, the Dainty Damselfly is a small and delicate damselfly. Both the males and females have blue and black markings with yellow undersides. Males have a characteristic ‘wine goblet’ marking just below their wings and females have black ‘rocket’ shapes up their bodies. They are very similar to other blue damselfly species found in Britain.
The Dainty Damselfly was first found in Britain during 1946 near Benfleet in Essex, and later its stronghold was discovered at a pond a few miles away. A significant population was present here, and the species clearly bred successfully in the Benfleet/Hadleigh area until 1952. However, the breaching of coastal defences and the subsequent great floods that affected East Anglia during the winter of 1952/53 seriously affected the pond, and in the summer of 1953 no Dainty Damselflies could be found. After further blank seasons in following years it was clear that the species had become extinct.
On the Continent, Dainty Damselfly has a predominantly central and southern distribution, though there have been signs of a recent northerly expansion of the species’ range. In the last fifteen years the damselflies have recolonised Belgium after a long absence and appeared for the first time ever in The Netherlands; the species also appeared on Jersey in 2009.
The re-appearance of Dainty Damselfly in Britain is highly significant. It follows the establishment of other unusual damselflies in southern England over the last decade or so. The Small Red-eyed Damselfly, now a common breeding species in much of south-east England, first appeared in Britain only as recently as 1999, while the Willow Emerald Damselfly appeared in 2007 and may now be established in Suffolk. These events, which for Britain’s dragonfly fauna are pretty much unprecedented, are thought likely to be a consequence of ongoing climate change. Many species with a primarily Mediterranean distribution in Europe are indeed known to now be advancing northwards.
Migrant dragonflies expert Adrian Parr said ‘it is to be hoped that the Dainty Damselflies find Kent to their liking, and that a permanent population becomes established.’ The discovery of two larval cases suggests that the damselflies have been in Britain undiscovered for at least a year and bred here last year. This population will be closely monitored with the hope that they will re-establish themselves here. The British Dragonfly Society would welcome news of any sightings of unusual damselflies or dragonflies [but please note that there are 6 other very similar species two of which, Common Blue Damselfly and Azure Damselfly, are very common. Please check the species pages on the website to help identify which species has been seen.]
Cumbria hosts first UK re-introduction of the White-faced Darter dragonfly
Cumbria Wildlife Trust is reintroducing the rare White-faced Darter dragonfly onto a lowland raised bog in north Cumbria. This is the first attempt to reintroduce the White-faced Darter dragonfly anywhere in the UK and it is being funded by Natural England.
The Trust is working with the British Dragonfly Society to secure the long-term future of this now rare species, which is currently only found on less than 10 sites in England. The reintroduction will help to prevent the dragonfly's extinction in Cumbria and provide the Trust with an exciting 'flagship' Biodiversity Action Plan species on one of its key nature reserves. It will also provide opportunities for interpreting dragonfly behaviour and conservation to a wide range of audiences.
The first of three annual phases of the reintroduction is being carried out this month (June). Buckets of the Sphagnum moss amongst which the larvae of the White-faced Darter live, have been collected from a donor site in north Cumbria. This 'mix' will contain eggs and two generations of larvae of the White-faced Darter. It is hoped that this will result in these very attractive insects appearing on the wing in spring 2011, and then each year thereafter, and colonising the myriad of pools found on the site.
"British Dragonflies" - 2nd edition
Dave Smallshire and Andy Swash have produced a revised edition of this comprehensive photographic field guide to the dragonflies and damselflies of Britain and Ireland. This completely revised second edition covers in detail the identification of all 56 species that have been recorded, as well as seven potential vagrants. It aims to help the Dragonfly-watcher – beginner or expert – to identify any species they encounter.
The guide is available from the BDS Shop at £17.95 (plus £2.00 p&p)
Online Recording Launched
We have finally launched the long awaited Online Recording System. The new recording system has photos of all the UK species to aid identification and a Google Map to pin point the location. The simple record entry will appeal to the casual observer and the advanced entry will enable more experienced recorders to input batches of records. The simple entry screens have a step by step guide with traffic lights at each stage which go green when all the required information has been correctly entered. If users are unsure of a dragonfly species digital images can be attached to records for definite identification by the BDS.
Steve Prentice, Dragonflies in Focus Officer said "The system is very easy to use and every single record will contribute toward the new national atlas."
In addition to the atlas the information collected will be used to make conservation decisions, to monitor endangered species. Records of breeding activity are of particular importance for identifying key sites for dragonflies. To find out more about how you can contribute towards the recording of Odonata species for the new atlas and for county records visit the revised Recording page of the website.
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.
This project is supported by the Fens Adventurers Rural Development Programme, an RDPE initiative funded by Defra, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development: Europe investing in rural area and Local Authorities. The funding is managed locally by Cambridgeshire County Council, Cambridgeshire ACRE and regionally by EEDA.
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.
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
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