Dorset Amphibian and Reptile Network (DARN) now has a Facebook group. Join the group and add any herp-related news or suggestions, or contact us to be added to the DARN email circulation list. DARN will also have a website soon, thanks to funding from Amphibian and Reptile Groups of the UK (ARG UK) and the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust (ARC). It should be up and running within a few weeks. The website will have an online recording function (with data passed on to ARC and DERC in due course). In the meantime, continue to use the Facebook group to post your herp photos, comments, suggestions, news and other items.

DARN's purpose is to promote the appreciation and conservation of native amphibians and reptiles in the county of Dorset. Operating as an informal email network, DARN serves as a means of communication between volunteers, professionals and the general public. Dorset has 12 of the UK’s 13 native amphibian and reptile species, and a handful of non-native species. Its internationally-important heathlands are famous as national strongholds for the rare reptiles, sand lizard and smooth snake, and southwest England’s only populations of our second-rarest amphibian, the natterjack toad. With such an important wildlife heritage in Dorset, several wildlife NGOs have their headquarters in the county, including ARC. Together with the various statutory bodies and local authorities, this means Dorset has many wildlife professionals.

DARN aims to form a link between all these people, and to nurture an appreciation among the general public for our herpetofaunal friends.