Calopteryx maculata has become a model system for studying behaviour and reproduction in odonates. Its iridescent coloration is thought to be important in intraspecific interactions but no study has yet measured coloration in a quantitative manner. In a recent study, Fitzstephens & Getty (2000. Animal Behaviour 60: 851-855) showed that lipld levels predict coloration as…
Cyanallagma demoiselle sp. nov. (holotype male deposited in DZUP: Brazil, São Paulo State, Cananéia, Ilha do Cardoso State Park), a new small greenish blue and black damselfly, is described, illustrated, and diagnosed based on males and females from the southeastern Atlantic Forest.
Polymorphism in coenagrionids is widely known, mainly for Ischnura. Here, we present the case of I. capreolus, a Neotropical species of which, until now, little information concerning color polymorphism and ontogenetic color changes was known. We used a marking and recapture method to evidence ontogenetic coloration changes in females. We show that, in addition to…
The dragonfly genus Ischnura has been the subject of numerous studies and is well studied in Europe and the Middle East. Nevertheless, information on the ecology, habitat preferences and phylogenetic relationships of some species is deficient. One species lacking such data is Ischnura intermedia, a near endemic species of the Middle East, found for the…
Although the endemic damselfly, Platycnemis subdilatata Selys, 1849, is widespread in the Maghreb, many aspects of its reproductive behaviour, biology and ecology are still unstudied. One particular feature of this species is that its coloration pattern continues to change during maturation and afterwards, which makes it a good model for assessing age effects on behavioural…
Genetically determined color polymorphisms have a long history in the study of evolutionary change acting on populations. The Odonata exhibit relatively high levels of sex-specific color polymorphisms in mature adults. In Ischnura and Coenagrion, female-specific polymorphisms are known to be controlled by Mendelian genes. Nearly half of Enallagma species have polymorphic females, but the inheritance…
Female-limited colour polymorphisms are widespread in Odonata, usually showing an androchrome and one or more gynochromes. Androchromes have been hypothesized to function as male mimics with a consequent decrease of male harassment, although males may also learn to recognize the different female colour morphs. In the Eurasian damselfly Lestes sponsa, the occurrence of two female…
Dysphaea haomiao sp. nov. (holotype ♂, China, Guizhou, Libo County, Xiaoqikong Scenic Area, Zhangjiang River, alt. c.450 m, 7 May 2007) is described and illustrated for both sexes. The male differs from its closest congeners, Dysphaea basitincta and D. gloriosa, by the blackish, completely opaque coloration of its wings.
Coeliccia sasamotoi sp. nov. is described based on specimens of both sexes collected from central Vietnam and Laos. It differs from related species in details of coloration, the shape of the male terminalia, and the shape of the posterior lobe of the female pronotum.
Teinobasis budeni sp. nov. is described from Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. Holotype ♂: Micronesia, Pohnpei, Sokehs, Nanpil River headwaters, 01 July 2001; allotype ♀: same locality, 03 February 2001, both leg. D.W. Buden; to be deposited in FSCA, Gainesville, FL, USA. The new species belongs in the Fortis-group and differs from all species in…