The aim of our project is the development and application of a system for the modelling of Odonata diversity (dragonfly diversity) - on population and species level - in arid and semiarid regions of Africa. The model system will help to understand the dynamics of Odonata communities and to evaluate different scenarios of global change and anthropogenic effects (i.e. extensive water use) for ecosystem-management. Odonate diversity can be used as an indicator in this context. Field studies on species and population diversity in order to develop and validate the model will be carried out in Namibia. Additionally, experts will be interviewed. Later the model shall be applied for other African savannah regions. In detail (briefly) the following works shall be done:

1.	In the catchments of the western ephemeral rivers, namely Swakop and probably Kuiseb, Ugab, Huab and Hoanib, the Odonata will be monitored in different types of habitats and along a gradient of decreasing rainfall and increasing drought, respectively. Habitat selection, live history and phenology of all common species will be studied. Effects of anthropogenic impact on the Odonata community structure like building of dams shall be evaluated.
2.	To obtain data on genetical diversity of populations and on the connection between population (via migration) moleculargenetical analyses will be carried out on different geographical scales. These are: (a) among habitats within one catchment, (b) among different catchments, (c) between the western catchments and other regions of Namibia, namely the wet region near Kavango and the Kunene, and (d) between Namibia and other African regions. For the latter we co-operate with Prof. M. Samways (Natal, South Africa) and another BIOTA project situated in Kenya.
3.	Basing on the above data (1.) a modelling of Odonata diversity under different scenarios (increase of drought, increase of water use, building of more dams etc.) will be carried out using habitat suitability models. These will be linked with models of population dynamics and data on climate and hydrology using in a geographical information system (GIS). Using a cellular automat model it will be possible to show regionally based diversity patterns for different scenarios. Due to a widely similar Odonata fauna in most savannah regions of Africa it will be possible to use that model on a larger geographical scale in future.
4.	A general overview on Odonata diversity of Namibia including a list of all Namibian species and their distribution patterns (based on GIS) will be generated from the literature, and from Odonata collections, mainly those in the Windhoek Natural Museum and the Berlin Museum of Natural History. This will be supplied by own field trips along a transect from Oranje to Kavango, in the western catchments and in the Kunene region.

Methods (briefly): The main field researchers in Namibia will be Andreas Martens and Frank Suhling accompanied by some students. Our field work will include a monitoring of the dragonfly fauna of about 120 sample sites (different types of wetlands) in the western river catchments. The dragonflies will be monitored mainly by counting adults at the water and by collecting exuviae. Larvae will be caught to get material for an identification key. In some few wetlands emergence cages and data-loggers will be installed. Moreover, we will conduct some field enclosure and exclosure experiments to obtain information on competitive and priority effects. Main field season will be between January and May.
Our project will be organised into different steps including research on dragonfly fauna, dragonfly communities as well as genetic diversity and modelling of the development of diversity under different scenarios of global change and human impact. In the first step we will focus mainly on the western ephemeral rivers' catchments, namely Swakop, and if possible Kuisep. Besides that we will produce distribution maps of all species occurring in Namibia. Later we want to include more aspects of population biology into the research and into the models and we want to model the dragonfly diversity for the whole country.

The research team:

Prof. Dr Otto Richter, Institute for Geographie and Geoecology, University of Braunschweig: biomathematics, modeling, population biology
Dr Dagmar Soendgerath, Institute for Geographie and Geoecology, University of Braunschweig: biomathematics, modeling
Dr Frank Suhling, Zoological Institute, University of Braunschweig: animal ecology, limnology, ecology of Odonata
Dr Andreas Martens, Zoological Institute, University of Braunschweig: animal ecology, ethology and sociobiology, ecology of Odonata
Dr Heike Hadrys, Institute for Ecology and Molecular Ecology, Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover: molecular population biology, evolutionary ecology
Dr Reinhard Joedicke, Lindern: systematics and taxonomy of Odonata