Aquatic Insects SIG 2026
26 February 2026 @ 09:30 – 27 February 2026 @ 15:30
Aquatic Ecosystems in the Data Age
Date: Thursday 26 February 2026 (9.30am – 3.30pm) and Friday 27 February 2026 (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Venue: Online
Our Aquatic Insects Special Interest Group event brings together researchers, conservation practitioners and enthusiasts to explore cutting-edge approaches in aquatic ecosystem monitoring and management. Through hands-on workshops and expert presentations, participants will gain practical skills in modern analytical techniques while engaging with current challenges in freshwater biodiversity conservation.
The event will comprise of a full day meeting on Thursday 26 February with an optional morning workshop on Friday 27 February (included in the price).
Day 1: Thursday 26 February (9.30am – 3.30pm)
Conservation, Management, and Taxonomic Innovation
Day 1 features research presentations and interactive sessions on current conservation challenges and emerging taxonomic tools. The morning includes a keynote on freshwater biodiversity conservation followed by panels covering adaptive management, community-based monitoring, and policy integration. The afternoon centres on interactive sessions exploring pros and cons of environmental DNA applications for biomonitoring. The day concludes with discussions on building research networks and future collaboration opportunities.
Keynote speaker
Michael J. Samways, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
Title: Dragonflies as sentinels in freshwater conservation (complementarity with other taxa, especially EPT)
Michael Samways (PhD, London University) is Emeritus Distinguished Professor at Stellenbosch University, South Africa. He focuses on many aspects of insect conservation from philosophy through to strategy implementation, nationally and internationally.
Michael is recipient of the John Herschel Medal of the Royal Society of South Africa, Senior Captain Scott and Gold Medals of the South African Academy of Science and Arts, and Gold Medal of the Academy of Science of South Africa. He received the life-time Stellenbosch University Chancellor’s Award, IUCN/SSC Chair’s Citation of Excellence, and the Marsh Award from the Royal Entomological Society for outstanding and exemplary lifetime contribution in Insect Conservation. His latest book is Conservation of Dragonflies: Sentinels for Freshwater Conservation (CABI/RES, 2024).
Day 2: Friday 27 February (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Data-Driven Approaches to Aquatic Ecosystem Assessment
Hands-on Workshop in R-Machine Learning Applications in Ecology – facilitated by SIG Convenor, Arron Watson (Environment Agency & University of Birmingham)
This optional half-day workshop (included in the price) focuses on a hands-on R workshop exploring machine learning applications with aquatic macroinvertebrate and environmental data. Participants will learn to use packages like Random Forest for ecological data analysis, beginning with data exploration and visualisation of macroinvertebrate community datasets alongside environmental covariates such as water chemistry and habitat metrics.
SIG Convenor
Arron Watson, Environment Agency Arron.Watson@environment-agency.gov.uk.
Arron works for the Environment Agency in the statutory sector, overseen by the Defra group. They work towards cleaner rivers and a healthier environment for people and wildlife to enjoy.
Arron enjoys working with work aquatic invertebrates and data.
Registration
Please note there are significantly discounted rates for RES members, so if you are not a member already, consider joining today!
To access discounted member rates, you must be logged into your account before registering.
Online registration deadline: 17:00 (GMT), Wednesday 25 February 2026
| Online | |
|---|---|
| RES Student Member | £5 |
| RES Member/Fellow | £10 |
| Standard Registration (Associate members and Non-members) | £20 |
