New County Dragonfly Recorders for Gloucestershire, County Durham, Surrey & Middlesex
We’re delighted to welcome recent recruits to the Recording Scheme as verifiers for the following Vice Counties: VC 33 – East Gloucestershire and VC 34 – West Gloucestershire – Richard Mundy Richard was recruited by Ingrid Twissell, our long-standing Gloucestershire resident and recorder who has retired from the role but helped us greatly by … Continued
David Hepper
Smallford Pits update: no charges from Crown Prosecution Service
Last month, staff and volunteers at the BDS were outraged to learn about the apparent deliberate poisoning of ponds at one of Hertfordshire’s top dragonfly sites: Smallford Pits (read here). This criminal act followed a previous incident in September 2020 during which the ponds were trashed with heavy machinery. Smallford Pits is a designated Local Wildlife … Continued
Neonicotinoid pesticide will not be used in England in 2021
In 2018 EU members banned the use of most neonicotinoids on outdoor crops as a result of growing evidence of the severe impact the pesticides have on the survival of bees, as well as other pollinators. However, the UK and nine other countries decided to continue to allow emergency use of the chemicals. Earlier this … Continued
County Dragonfly Recorder Reports 2020
British Dragonfly Society County Dragonfly Recorder Reports for 2020 are now available. Download them here to review the highlights of the 2020 dragonfly season in your County.
Meet Cephalozygoptera! The newly described, and sadly extinct, Odonata suborder
Researchers from Simon Fraser University, Canada, announced the classification of a new suborder of extinct Odonata after conducting an extensive review of fossil specimens and scientific papers dating back as far as 162 years. Within the historic studies they found descriptions of specimens that matched fossils collected from British Columbia and Washington State. On first … Continued
Top Hertfordshire Dragonfly Site Criminally Destroyed
Police and the Environment Agency are currently investigating the destruction of two protected ponds at Smallford Pits Local Wildlife Site near Saint Albans. Local residents were left aghast after discovering that the ponds at their treasured wildlife hotspot had been polluted, with either diesel or petrol, in December 2020. Earlier in September, of the same … Continued
Support the BDS while you shop on Amazon
Stock up on good karma while you shop with Amazon Smile. Select the British Dragonfly Society as your chosen charity and Amazon will donate a small percentage of your purchase to us! Competing for funding during the Covid pandemic has been tougher than ever so we’re grateful for every penny donated to help us continue … Continued
Volunteers needed for White-faced Darter surveys at Black Lake, Cheshire
The rare and endangered White-faced Darter was reintroduced to a specially managed pool in Delemere Forest back in 2013. In 2020 adults were spotted nearby at Black Lake for the first time, a sign the population might be spreading. The Wildlife Trust is looking for volunteers with dragonfly recording experience to help carry out simple … Continued
Download “Dragonflies in Devon” by Dave Smallshire
Dave Smallshire, veteran County Dragonfly Recorder for Devon, has released a guide to the county’s Dragonflies, which you can download here, or from the Devon BDS page. The publication provides and in depth account of the county’s species as well as the history of dragonfly recording in Devon. Image by Richard Munckton
PhD opportunity studying Irish Damselfly at Belfast University
QUADRAT studentship UK and all international students are eligible Deadline: 18/01/2021 Main objectives of the project: 1) To determine the phylogenetic relationship of the Irish Damselfly to the other populations across Europe; 2) To investigate the species population genetics (connectivity, effective population size, levels of inbreeding, etc.) within Ireland; 3) To develop integrative models … Continued