Welcome to Lakefly
Lakefly is an exciting new citizen science project intended to help communities across the UK to monitor the health of our lakes simply by collecting and identifying freshwater invertebrates.
Led by the Freshwater Biological Association (FBA) in partnership with Natural England, and funded through Defra’s Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) programme, Lakefly empowers volunteers to survey freshwater invertebrates, tiny creatures that live in the shallow margins of lakes and provide important clues about water quality.
Using a simple sampling method and easy-to-learn identification guide, Lakefly volunteers collect valuable data that can help detect pollution, track ecological changes, and support better management of our freshwater ecosystems.
Many thanks to Gino Brignoli for the Baetidae banner photo.
To find out more about our Lakefly Pilot visit our news section and read past issues of our newsletter.
Why lakes?
Unlike rivers, most lakes in the UK aren’t regularly monitored, especially smaller or remote ones. Yet lakes play a vital role in our environment, providing clean water, supporting biodiversity, and offering places for recreation and reflection.
Lakefly is designed to fill this monitoring gap by combining science and community action. Whether you're an experienced Riverfly monitor or a complete beginner, Lakefly gives you the tools and training to make a meaningful contribution.
What is Lakefly?
Lakefly is based on a simple idea: trained volunteers collect and identify lake invertebrates from the shoreline, then submit their findings through a national recording system. This information helps scientists detect early signs of lake pollution and degradation, providing an “early warning” system that can support conservation and management.
The method has been adapted from successful professional and citizen-led river monitoring programmes like Riverfly, making it accessible to people with no prior scientific experience.
It’s been a pleasure working with partners, conservation groups, local communities, and lake lovers during the pilot year.
The Lakefly project is presently paused and we would like to extend our deepest thanks to everyone who has supported the initiative.
Pilots completed
In 2025, we ran a pilot phase of the Lakefly project across England. Volunteer groups were trained and supported to sample lake invertebrates once a month between July and December 2025.
These pilots will help us refine the Lakefly method, test training resources, and shape the project ahead of a proposed national launch in 2026.
Lakefly aims to provide a simple, standardised monitoring technique for sampling macro invertebrates in lakes. To date, very little has been done on freshwater invertebrates in lake environments, and Lakefly hopes to fill this gap in the data. Lakefly will allow us to collect presence and abundance data on a range of freshwater invertebrates and this data will allow us to monitor changes occurring in lakes over time.
Find out more about Lakefly and explore useful resources
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Lakefly Online Training
This short online course will introduce you to the Lakefly project, the freshwater invertebrates we monitor, and prepare you for your in-person training.
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Lakefly Data Recording Form
Once you have completed your Lakefly monitoring, please use our online form to upload all your data from your Lakefly monthly survey and submit your records.
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Lakefly Resources
Please visit our Lakefly resources page to download the freshwater invertebrates ID guide plus additional guidance to support your Lakefly monitoring.
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Lakefly News
Keep up to date with the Lakefly pilot by reading our Lakefly news articles, view past issues of our Lakefly pilot newsletters and sign up for future updates.