Stormwater ponds promote dragonfly (Odonata) species richness and density in urban areas

Abstract

The loss of global biodiversity is one of the major challenges of our time and urbanisation is seen as a main cause of this. The aim of this study was to determine whether artificial stormwater ponds, designed to control water flow, can act as refuges for Odonata in urban areas. Moreover, we analysed the influence of habitat and landscape quality on dragonfly species richness and density of 35 stormwater ponds (STOPON) in comparison to 35 control ponds (CONTROL). Our study revealed significant differences in environmental conditions between STOPON and CONTROL. At the habitat level, STOPON were larger, had a warmer microclimate, and lower concentrations of phosphate. STOPON were predominantly situated in suburbs, while CONTROL occurred mostly in rural areas. Accordingly, at the landscape level, STOPON had greater cover of built-up area as well as a lower cover of arable land and woodland. In line with this, the dragonfly assemblages at STOPON and CONTROL differed. Overall species richness was greater at STOPON than at CONTROL, and indicator species were only identified for STOPON. Especially threatened species benefited from STOPON, having higher species richness as well as higher adult and exuviae densities than CONTROL. In conclusion, our study shows that stormwater ponds in urban areas play an important role in the conservation of dragonflies in general and threatened species in particular. At STOPON, as a result of regular management, the habitat quality was high and compensated for the low landscape quality stemming from significant urbanisation effects.