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Online talk November 2023 – Una Fitzpatrick
1 November 2023 @ 19:30 – 20:45
The Royal Entomological Society’s online talk series
Our monthly online lectures take place on the first Wednesday of the month from 19:30 to 20:45 (BST). Tune in to hear an in depth discussion on a specific field of entomology, with the opportunity to ask questions. You will also hear about any updates and new activities from the Society.
These talks are free for RES members, so join today!
Note: All attendees, including members, must register below to receive the link to attend the talk.
Insect conservation: from data to action
Dr Úna Fitzpatrick
Senior Ecologist, National Biodiversity Data Centre, Ireland
Using Ireland’s wild bees as a model, this talk will discuss how data has been used to identify conservation priorities, establish monitoring frameworks, drive citizen science initiatives, and ultimately create positive action through the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan.
Dr Úna Fitzpatrick, from the National Biodiversity Data Centre in Ireland, has been instrumental in increasing insect knowledge and capacity, in particular for bees and other pollinators. In addition to managing the national database of records for bees and hoverflies, Una has had a leading role in training and capacity building of biological recorders. She regularly blogs and interacts with the media to spread awareness about biodiversity and insect recording in Ireland to the general public.
Úna has been involved in insect conservation in Ireland and globally for almost 20 years, and has had a huge and transformative role in recording, promoting and conserving insects in that time. Una has had an impressive and varied career to date bridging the gap between ecology, citizen science, the general public and conservation.
Following a degree in Botany, her PhD focussed on plant genetics based on islands in the South Pacific. On finishing her PhD she became also interested in insects, and worked to produce some of the seminal work on bee diversity in Ireland, including the first National Red List of bees ever published (Fitzpatrick et al. 2006) as well as some of the first published literature on bee decline in Ireland (Fitzpatrick et al. 2007b, Fitzpatrick et al. 2007a).
Since 2007, Una has worked as an Ecologist and then Senior Ecologist at the National Biodiversity Data Centre – Ireland’s central repository for national biodiversity data and GBIF node (www.biodiversityireland.ie). Since this time, Una has been an inspiration to biodiversity recorders and citizen scientists around Ireland, and a driving force in national interest in biodiversity, biodiversity monitoring and conservation.