Pesticides from salad crops polluting Southern Damselfly chalk streams
The Guardian has reported that a watercress plant run by Bakkavor is due to close at the end of this month after environmentalists from the Salmon & Trout Conservation Trust discovered it was polluting the Upper Itchen with neonicotinoid pesticides. The Itchen is a rare and protected chalk stream that is home to a wealth…
Fifth edition of Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO) released
“Humanity stands at a crossroads with regard to the legacy it leaves to future generations. Biodiversity is declining at an unprecedented rate, and the pressures driving this decline are intensifying. None of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets will be fully met, in turn threatening the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and undermining efforts to…
Southern Damselflies found at new sites in Pembrokeshire
A £19,000 grant from Natural Resources Wales has resulted in the enhancement of over 100 sites in Pembrokeshire. Following habitat management work, surveyors identified Southern Damselflies (Coenagrion mercuriale) at seven news sites including Blaencleddau, Dolau Isaf and Waun Isaf. As the Southern Damselfly is currently categorised as endangered these results have massive implications for the…
Most of England’s rivers polluted, reports EA
According to the most recent figures from the Environment Agency 86% of rivers in England are failing to meet ecological standards. While conditions have improved since the 1990s the report reveals that we are completely off track to meet the 2027 target of having 100% healthy waters. The three main culprits behind our polluted rivers…
Pond Ponderings – from St. Andrew’s House in Exmouth
Our newest Pond Ponderings writer is Richard Spencer, who has worked on a fantastic pond project for the benefit of both people and dragonflies in Exmouth: “St. Andrew’s House is a residential project in Exmouth for adults with a history of mental health problems, run by SAHA (Salvation Army Housing Association). Being a converted…
Dragonfly named after BDS County Dragonfly Recorder Bill Budd
Megalogomphus buddi: a Bornean species that breeds in fast flowing forest streams. Until recently it was treated as one and the same as Megalogomphus sumatranus; however, a recent taxonomic review by Dow and Price (2020)1 M. buddi as a novel species based on variations in accessory genitalia. This new species is named after Bill Budd, in…
Pond Ponderings: First Summer of a Raised Suburban Pond in Worcestershire
We are delighted to welcome a new Pond Ponderings writer, Grace Wright from Worcestershire: A sunny afternoon spent at the RSPB Minsmere Reserve in Suffolk several summers ago first sparked my interest in dragonflies. After a few lazy hours watching these brightly coloured creatures skimming over pond surfaces, my fiancé George and…
A Pond in Every Prison
The Ministry of Justice Ecology Team are running a scheme to get a pond in every prison to help you enhance the sites for wildlife. A wildlife pond is one of the single best features for attracting new wildlife to a prison. By creating ponds and wetland areas – no matter how small – you’re…
Dragonfly gynandromorphs
Gynandromorphism is a rare condition that causes an organism to develop both male and female characteristics. This is most conspicuous when the gynandromorphism is bilateral- the organism has male characteristics on one side of its body and female characteristics on the other. However, this is not always the case and the characteristics can be more…
Pond Ponderings: Update From Dan Brawn’s Impressive Emperor Pond in Felixstowe, Suffolk.
My previous blog described the emergence in spring 2019 of twelve Emperors after one year as larvae. On the 31st May this year 2020, I noticed seven Emperor exuvia which came as a surprise as I had not spotted or fished out any Emperor larvae during pondweed maintenance since last spring. That same evening in the fading…