1. The gathering and application of invertebrate data Brian Nelson, National Museums Northern Ireland

2. Gathering Most recorders work in their spare time Majority of records gathered by a few recorders Increasing (?) number of naturalists, more inclined to record challenging groups Increased availability of keys and field guides, web-based resources Large datasets more easily stored and analysed on home computers

3. Gathering: often a solitary activity….

4. ….. but can be communal.

5. What to do with records? You could do nothing – but what is the point? Get them verified, become trusted Publish records yourself or contribute them to a recording scheme Today’s option - send to a records centre Leave critical vouchers in a museum – very important!!

6. Application Production of atlases Site protection Species protection Red data lists Monitoring Enthusing Analysis of trends e.g. response to climate and habitat change

7. DragonflyIreland - the mapping of Ireland in four years

8. Aims Map the distribution of all Irish species Compare with previous surveys Document habitat, species assemblages and important sites Encourage recording End product - atlas and handbook

9. Coverage Pre 1970 1970-1999 2000-2003

10. Recording effort

11. 2000-2003 1980-1999

13. Publishing and dissemination of records Long tradition of atlases of Britain and Ireland Ireland often poorly covered in maps and text Trend for Ireland-only atlases being produced Online access with full data – NBN and NBDC

16. Distribution map of Irish Bluet Coenagrion lunulatum on NBDC site

17. Training

18. Water beetles of Ireland

19. Progress: number of water beetle records per decade

21. Water beetle threat categories Regionally Extinct 9 Critically Endangered 10 Endangered8 Vulnerable22 Near Threatened 24 least concern/data-deficient 184

22. Dragonfly species richness

23. Nationally (l) and regionally (r) important dragonfly sites

24. Emergence pattern

27. Ireland-only Insects 1 Odonata - damselfly 2 Hymenoptera - bee/ant/wasp 3 Trichoptera - caddisfly 5 Hemiptera - bugs/aphids/froghoppers 5 Lepidoptera - butterflies/moths 11 Coleoptera - beetles 21 Diptera - two-winged flies

28. Irish Bluet Coenagrion lunulatum Main distribution Ireland, Netherlands, Finland, probably Russia, Mongolia Northern temperate species mesotrophic ponds

29. Sigara fallenoidea A water boatman. Large Irish lakes. Relict species in Northern Hemisphere

30. Sigara fallenoidea

31. Sigara fallenoidea Pohjanpikkumalluainen

32. Limnoporus rufoscutellatus A large pondskater. Widespread in central and northern Europe Occurs at very low densites, 1000 other gerrids to 1 of this species.

33. Gyrinus natator The Shady Whirligig the commonest whirligig? last record in GB 1921 shady peat cuttings and lake edges presumably at threat from sites becoming overgrown as in Cumbria