Peat excavations on fens – potential role of anthropogenic peat pools in supporting Odonata in Poland and central Europe

<ns3:p>Peatlands are one the most threatened habitats in Europe. They have been dried and changed into hay meadows and the peat was extracted for heating purposes. Climatic changes have also contributed to the vanishing of peatlands. This is why, water organisms are becoming endangered or extinct. In Poland, fens are the most common among peatlands, yet still, the fauna of invertebrates, in this case Odonata, is not fully examined, especially in anthropogenic habitats such as peat excavations. Such water bodies seem to be the last hope for tyrphophiles, since the pits are deep and the water mirror is visible which ensures reproduction. On account of degradation of natural habitats, anthropogenic waters are in the center of attention; they may become the secondary habitats for aquatic organisms, including dragonflies. Peat excavations are able to support populations of plants and animals. Nevertheless, they are still a by-product of extracting peat for a fuel and horticultural purposes and not the object of deliberate protection. Still, more have to be explored in the context on specific factors important for dragonflies living in peat excavations, in order to plan the conservation in a directed way. There are only few articles particularly about that subject in Poland and most of the authors concentrate mainly on peat pools on sphagnum bogs. There are some publications in Europe, though, with the ideas for protection and conservation of dragonflies. Nevertheless, more should be added concerning dragonflies on peat excavations specifically, since the naturalness of the habitat is not the main issue as far as biodiversity of odonatofauna is concerned. The aim of this article is to find available articles and papers which are focused on odonatofauna of peat excavations on fens (alkaline fens, where possible) to evaluate such habitats as useful anthropogenic water bodies in conservation of dragonflies.</ns3:p>