Conservation requirements of the Southern Damselfly in chalkstream and fen Habitats

Abstract

This report presents the findings of a PhD study investigating the ecology and conservation requirements of the Southern Damselfly, Coenagrion mercuriale in chalkstream and fen habitats in the UK. The primary aim of this study was to examine the ecology and habitat requirements of this species in its chalkstream and fen habitats. It is hoped that the study will provide a basis for further conservation efforts, by guiding habitat management plans, informing conservation strategies and suggesting targets for surveillance and monitoring programmes. Fieldwork was performed primarily in the Itchen and Test Valleys in Hampshire (southern England), but also in fen habitat in Oxfordshire and Anglesey. It is concluded that loss of habitat, alterations to management on remaining sites and fragmentation of a once continuous network of sites, are likely to have been the driving forces behind the decline of this species, and that these remain the greatest threats to its continued existence. It is argued that successful conservation of the Southern Damselfly will involve active management of existing sites, together with the creation (or recreation) of a series of new sites to reconnect populations.

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ORCID for Tim Sykes: orcid.org/0000-0002-0665-0368

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