Platyhelminth Worms on a Plane

Posted by Graeme Lyons , Friday 25 March 2016 17:41

I promised to summarise where we are with Pan-species Listing every year on or around the 31st December or 1st January. I've only got round to doing it, three months after I noted down the information on a plane somewhere around Tasmania. Anywhere, First up, here is the top ten as of that date. 

1 Jonty Denton 12240
2 Dave Gibbs 11110
3 Mark Telfer 7172
4 The late Eric Philp 6878
5 Simon Davey 6513
6 Brian Eversham 6271
7 Nicola Bacciu 6074
8 Graeme Lyons 6029
9 Malcolm Storey 5915
10 Matt Prince 5840

Only six of the nine active listers here have updated this year.  I'm on 6123 now out of interest.

Anyway, I also added the 100th lister to this, who was Rowan Alder on 903. It's now Jerry Lanfear on 961. There are only two people in the top 100 who are under a 1000 species. Our youngest lister is 12 and our oldest 63. I know we have some people older than 63 but that's just the ages people have put on the website. Actually 41 of the 162 people on the rankings have put their age down (42 if you count the 0 year old but I reckon that's a typo!) The average age therefore of the PSLer who is prepared to admit their age is 38!

So there were 154 on rankings in the new year and 300 people signed up to the website. I didn't check the Facebook group but there are 261 as of right now. Not bad going at all considering we had to start from scratch with the Facebook group this time last year.

Here are the top ten sites as of the new year

.
1 Wicken Fen 8674
2 Esher Commons 7945
3 RSPB Minsmere 5928
4 Thorn Moors 5052
5 RSPB Abernethy 4735
6 RSPB The Lodge 4290
7 Hatfield Forest 4184
8 Sussex Wildlife Trust Rye Harbour 3540
9 Northwich Community Woodlands 3118
10 Sussex Wildlife Trust Iping & Stedham 2800

No changes have occurred here in the last three months. I don't think this part of the website works very well without taxa breakdowns on the location rankings. I hope this can be added but it's beyond my abilities and I have asked BRC if we can have this added but I'm still waiting for a reply. I think this could make site managers competitive and would really add to our understanding of sites.

Now for the taxa breakdowns as of the new year.

Algae Jony Denton 288
Slime Moulds Malcolm Storey 51
Protists Jony Denton 24
Lichens Simon Davey 1195
Fungi Malcom Storey 1391
Bryophytes Simon Davey 467
Vascular Plants John Martin 2205
Sponges Jonty Denton 8
Comb-jellies Jeff Blincow,
Richard Comont,
Jerry Lanfear,
James Harding-Morris,
Lee Johnson
2
Cnidarians Richard Comont 37
Molluscs Jonty Denton 216
Bryozoans Richard Comont 23
Annelids Richard Comont 48
Platyhelminth worms Brian Eversham 17
Sea-spiders Richard Comont 4
Arachnids Jonty Denton 492
Myriapods Keith Lugg 71
Crustaceans Brian Eversham 98
Springtails Richard Comont 35
3-tailed Bristletails Matt Princve,
Nicola Bacciu,
Jony Denton,
Brian Eversham
6
Odonata Mark Telfer, Dave Gibbs 48
Orthopteroids Mark Telfer 41
Hemipteroids Jonty Denton 850
Hymenoptera Dave Gibbs 792
Coleoptera Mark Telfer 2562
Diptera Dave Gibbs 3123
Butterflies Seth Gibson 62
Moths Tony Davis 1617
Remaining small
insect orders
Jonty Denton 194
Echinoderms Richard Comont 19
Tunicates Richard Comont 17
Fish Richard Comont 95
Reptiles Dave Gibbs,
Seth Gibson,
Paul Clack
9
Amphibians Jonty Denton 13
Birds Dave Gibbs 519
Mammals Mark Telfer 64
Other animals Jonty Denton 36

 A total of 16739 species! Every time this is updated, a new record has been broken. I was pleased to see that new records now stand for comb-jellies, cnidarians, myriapods, springtails, beetles and birds since I captured this info. The beetle record is already 70 species higher than this since Mark updated. I'd love it if that whenever anyone updates this list and makes a new record, that it shows on the front page of the website as these are significant events and will only reduce in frequency as times goes on and the records get harder and harder to beat. I've still not managed to get on this list again after briefly being joint top fish lister. I'm not even second now. I did have all sorts of plans about going out on fishing boats but I'm always too busy these days. My tactic is to outlive everyone else through extreme exercise and healthy eating. Marginal gains.

With people finding species new to Britain, new to science and a new generation of youngsters getting on board, PSL is really finding its feet. I have already started getting going with my first survey last week where I had a number of new beetles and spiders at Ebernoe Common. I have lots and lots of surveys planned for 2016 and my new battery powered suction sampler just turned up too, meaning I'll always have one in the car ALL THE TIME. Here is to a great 2016, happy listing!

4 Response to "Platyhelminth Worms on a Plane"

Anonymous Says:

Hi Graeme. Does above list mean Keith Lugg holds record for Myriapods (71 species) for a PSLer? Surely several others must have seen over 100! Cheeers, Steve Gregory.

Graeme Lyons Says:

Yes he does Steve, although he is on 77 now. If anyone out there has seen more than 100 myripaods, which they might well have, it's academic until they put their names down and sign up to PSL!

Rachel Bicker Says:

Outliving everyone sounds a great tactic, but then all that time spend exercising negates time spent in field or microscoping? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRFAOYofBqI&index=1&list=PLk4aJ7DYaupSHhl7rqHHYJBGzpADZdCfM

Graeme Lyons Says:

I do squats at the micropscope to overcome this. Also, have you seen my sweep-netting? Ha ha.

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