Odonata species diversity, distributions, and status in a rare sand prairie-savanna wetscape

Inland sand areas scattered across the North American eastern deciduous forest and western tallgrass prairie ecotone are known for supporting pyrogenic early-successional vegetation and specially adapted terrestrial faunas. Many of these globally and regionally rare systems contain functionally connected wetland networks (“wetscapes”) potentially important for aquatic insects.

Dragonfly (Odonata) community structure in the Eastern Highlands Biodiversity Hotspot of Zimbabwe: potential threats of land use changes on freshwater invertebrates

We examined the diversity and potential drivers of dragonfly distribution in a biodiversity hotspot of Southern Africa (Eastern Highlands, Zimbabwe) by surveying 30 sites (13 lentic and 17 lotic habitats) located within this region. Additionally, we identified the anthropogenic factors that may threaten Odonata diversity and abundance. Our results revealed that 27 odonate species are…

Shifts in dragonfly community structure across aquatic ecotones

Dragonflies (Odonata: Anisoptera) are often used as indicators of habitat type and quality due to their varied use of aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Species differ in their preferences for lotic and lentic waters, but community changes across ecotones, or transitional zones between distinct habitats (e.g. lotic and lentic), are not well understood. We quantified dragonfly…

Emergence timing and fixation height in Pachydiplax longipennis (Odonata: Libellulidae) at varying substrate density and sunlight exposure

Emergence substrate and sunlight penetration inherently trade off in patchy vegetation. Given the importance of solar radiation at emergence, we expected greater sunlight availability in sparse vegetation to advance emergence timing and reduce the average height of emergence fixation. We used outdoor mesocosms stocked with varying cattail (Typha) densities and late-stage Pachydiplax longipennis (Odonata: Libellulidae)…

The Pseudagrion split: molecular phylogeny confirms the morphological and ecological dichotomy of Africa’s most diverse genus of Odonata (Coenagrionidae)

The continental African representatives of the genus Pseudagrion fall into two groups (A and B) based on their ecology and larval and adult morphology. While the B-group species are found in generally warmer habitats, which are more sunny, lentic or low-lying, the A-group representatives occur more in cooler habitats. We compared molecular genetic and ecological…