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According to The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), dragonflies are ideal indicators of wetland health.  Dragonfly larvae are aquatic, and the presence or absence of certain dragonfly species within wetlands are used to monitor  wetland health over long periods of time.  In 2005 the state of West Virginia began a "dragonfly atlas" project to begin the initial documentation of dragonfly (and damselfly) species occurring across the state.

As a partner in this project, Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge hosted a "Dragonfly Round-up" on July 8, 2006. The refuge was a focal point for an all day field trip as part of Oglebay Institute's 2006 Dragonfly Weekend. Approximately 30 participants from West Virginia and surrounding states, along with 5 refuge volunteers and 3 staff members, split into three groups and collected dragonflies and damselflies from several different wetland sites. The trips focused mainly on species identification and capture techniques, as well as on refuge ecology and history. In addition to the ongoing collection efforts of refuge staff, twenty species of dragonflies and damselflies (previously undocumented from the refuge) were captured and identified during the field trip. This brings the total number of documented dragonfly species in Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge to approximately 43 species.