Download - NERC Open Research Archive - Natural Environment ...

INTRODUCTION
The term 'aflas' might be expected to refer to a book
of maps. This volume contains maps of all the resident
dragonflies, and the more frequent immigrants are
discussed, but, in common with several recent
Atlases of the British and Irish fauna and flora, it
contains far more text than maps. This fact reflects a
trend in biological recording which is discussed in
the chapter on the History of recording, and is
reviewed by Harding and Sheail (1992).
The distribution maps of dragonflies presented
here are among the most complete available for an
invertebrate group. Only the butterflies have
enjoyed such a popular following, and the attentions
of a co-ordinated group of skilled enthusiasts. Thus,
if a dragonfly species is not recorded from a region,
there is every likelihood that it is genuinely absent,
and that the gap is no mere artefact of recorder
effort. This aspect is discussed further in the
sections describing the data set and the coverage
which has been achieved.
The Species accounts which accompany the maps
provide a commentary on the British and Irish
distributions, and refer to the European and global
range of each species. The latter part of this
Introduction places the fauna in its European
context. The Species accounts also provide new
insight into the habitat requirements of a number of
important species, and summarise aspects of
dragonfly behaviour which are particularly relevant
to recording. They also provide an introduction to
the literature on dragonfly biology. A Glossary is
included to explain the technical terms which may
be unfamiliar to non-specialists.
The Species accounts highlight gaps in what is
known of the British and Irish species, which it is
hoped will encourage recorders to observe more
closely, and to report their observations in the
literature. The emphasis over the 20 years of the
Odonata Recording Scheme has moved from simply
plotting the geographic distribution of species, to
studying many aspects of the biology of species.
The methods employed in recording have evolved,
encouraged by the newsletters of the Recording
Scheme and, more recently, in consultation with the
British Dragonfly Society Methodology is discussed
in the chapter on Fieldwork, and opportunities for
further development of techniques are presented in
the chapter on Future recording.
More detailed recording provides additional
opportunities for examining aspects of the life of
dragonflies, apart from their geographic
occurrence. The analyses of flight period
information from the Odonata Recording Scheme
present examples of what is possible.
The emphasis on 'research' is not intended to
discourage amateur involvement. Almost all the
records summarised in this Atlas come from
'amateur' recorders: even the small proportion
which derive from the work of professional
biologists tend to be the result of spare-time
fieldwork. As concern for the environment grows
and, with it, a much deeper awareness of the fine
details of ecological problems, such as pollution and
human-induced climate change, the role of the
skilled amateur naturalist is more vital than ever.
Apart from deepening our understanding of the
biogeography of dragonflies, the Recording
Scheme has. focused attention on the need for
conservation measures for dragonflies. The chapter
on Dragonflies and nature conservation here
provides a history of conservation in Britain, and the
context and a rationale for future efforts.
Conservation has been a driving force for many
recorders in the past. Recent developments in
recording methods, especially the approach
adopted in the Key Sites Project, should enable the
efforts of recorders to be applied even more directly
to ensuring the survival of the British and Irish
Odonata.
Throughout this Atlas, English names of plants follow
Stace (1991); scientific names of plants, also
following Stace (1991), are given in Appendix 2.
Unless otherwise qualified, the word 'dragonfly' is
used to mean all members of the order Odonata
(see Glossary for amplification).