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FOREWORD
Having been on the fringe of the work leading up to
the preparation of this Atlas has enabled me to see
the fruits of formidable amounts of work being
harvested, processed and refined into a satisfying
result. Like a good wine, it has the subtleties of its
component parts, which the discerning user will be
able to detect, but it also provides a complete and
rewarding whole.
The Atlas is a prime example of the collaboration
between volunteers and those employed to compile
data for research and conservation. National
dragonfly recording began within the Insects
Distribution Maps Scheme in 1968. This Scheme
was set up by the Biological Records Centre (BRC)
and was administered by the late John Heath,
assisted by Mike Skelton. Progress was slow
because of the absence of a readily available
identification guide. However, in 1977 Basil Harley,
then of Curwen Press, masterminded the
publication of a well-illustrated guide by Cyril
Hammond. This publication made a recording
scheme truly viable and has remained in print ever
since, in an edition revised by Bob Merritt and
published by Harley Books in 1983.
When David Chelmick took responsibility for
organising the Scheme in 1977, recording was
already beginning to increase, but his energy and
his enthusiasm were soon to influence a growing
number of recorders. By 1979, the second edition of
the Provisional atlas, edited by David, showed
considerable improvement on the earlier edition
(1978) which had been edited by John Heath, but
based on the work of Mike Skelton.
In 1981 Bob Merritt succeeded David Chelmick as
scheme organiser. Over the next nine years Bob
devoted enormous energy and personal
commitment to the Scheme and has continued to
foster a level of interest in this group of insects
which would have been unimaginable 20 years ago.
Above all, Bob has ensured that the standards of
recording are the very highest. The excellence of
the quality of the data held at BRC and summarised
in this Atlas is almost entirely due to Bob's thorough
knowledge of the dragonfly fauna through his
extensive fieldwork in Britain and Ireland, and to his
meticulous checking of records before their
submission to BRC.
Norman Moore's involvement with the preparation of
this Atlas is particularly welcome. Norman was joint
author of the much sought-after early New Naturalist
volume Dragonflies, and his influence on the study
and conservation of the group has become
apparent over the years, both at home and overseas.
My colleague, Brian Eversham, has devoted
considerable time and energy to work on the data
for dragonflies and has been able to make some
initial analyses for this Atlas, together with preparing
some of the text.
It is my personal pleasure that the Atlas of
dragonflies has now been published after so much
work by all concerned, including, of course, the
cohorts of volunteer recorders. I have strong
memories of working with all the personalities
mentioned above, but particularly with the three
authors, so that to pick up this Atlas will bring me a
host of personal recollections.
Quite apart from my own pleasure in this volume, I
am confident that it will prove to be as significant a
stage in the study of dragonflies in Britain and
Ireland as were the publications of Dragonflies in
1960 and The dragonflies of Great Britain and Ireland
in 1977. It places the fauna of these islands on
record in such a way that it is now possible to relate
the distribution of our species to their occurrence in
several other western European countries where
similar studies have been undertaken. The data
summarised in the Atlas are held at BRC and will be
put to a wide variety of uses, especially in research
and nature conservation.
I now look forward to seeing further results from the
recording effort of the last 20 years and to new
recording to provide fresh insights into the ecology
and distribution of these impressive and captivating
insects.
Paul T Harding
Biological Records Centre
rrEMonks Wood
February 1995