Dragonfly fauna in rewetted mires in Belarus: diverse but different from natural sites

Abstract

Mire specialist species are under strong anthropogenic pressure. In areas where the exploitation of their habitat has been temporary or unsuccessful, restoration frequently has risen as an objective. The results of the restoration activities for habitat specialists, however, are unclear. In this work we investigated whether raising the water level ca. 10 years ago in degraded bogs has brought back a characteristic group of fauna, and mire specialists therein. Dip-netting for Odonata larvae, together with habitat description, was carried out in restored, unrestored, and natural sites. We found almost no larvae at unrestored sites. The restored sites provided habitat for diverse Odonata fauna, including lagg zone species. Bog specialists only occurred at a former pitmining site. Based on the study, we suggest three means to support the biodiversity of mire Odonata: (i) protecting the remaining natural mires, (ii) using pit-mining instead of milling for peat extraction, and (iii) creating special pools in former milled sites that have been designated for mire restoration.