FEW INSECT GROUPS command more awe or are more immediately recognisable to so many people as the dragonflies. They are a source of beauty and inspiration to all who take time to watch them. Their aerial skills and finely honed hunting abilities on the wing are second to none, yet these creatures retain many attributes that first evolved in recognisable ancestors more than 300 million years ago. Dragonflies tell us a great deal about what insects were like before the origin of flexing wings or complete metamorphosis, characters that foreshadowed the vast number of ‘higher’ insect species. Dragonflies are superb animals for the study of countless aspects of biology. Their aquatic larvae are important components of freshwater ecosystems and are indicators of water quality. Their territoriality and hunting skills make them excellent subjects for learning about animal behaviour. Their large size permits a much broader range of observations in the field than is possible for most other kinds of insects. Making these spectacular animals accessible to a wider audience is a worthy goal, and one fulfilled admirably by this volume.
There are no contemporary natural historians whom I admire more than Philip Corbet and Steve Brooks, nor any who are in a better position to have prepared this book. We are truly fortunate that they have combined their unmatched knowledge, experience and observational and writing skills to pull together such a wealth of material on British odonates. The book provides a wonderful foundation for anyone discovering the study of odonates for the first time or seeking to expand their knowledge by better understanding the breadth of dragonfly biology. The range of subject matter in this book is impressive, covering such diverse topics as habitats, populations, life history, parasitoids, feeding behaviour, seasonality, flight, sexual behaviour and maturation. This provides a firm foundation for in-depth studies of dragonflies in general and the British fauna in particular.
With this background and the authors’ sound advice on how to locate, collect, photograph and identify British dragonflies, a spectacular world is opened to the interested observer. This constitutes one of the best introductions to odonatology available and will, I predict, contribute to the widening interest in dragonflies in Britain and the education of a new generation of both professional and amateur odonatologists who delight in the study of these most fascinating of creatures. As our environments continue to change rapidly in the decades ahead, a growing awareness and understanding of our dragonflies will prove essential to science and biological conservation. No one who would truly understand either insect evolution or the function of ecosystems associated with fresh waters can do so by ignoring the Odonata. The growth of expertise on any taxon depends heavily on access to reliable and inspiring literature; the dragonflies will profit immensely from just such a contribution from Corbet and Brooks.
Quentin D. Wheeler
Former Keeper of Entomology
The Natural History Museum
London