The insects of the order Odonata have an aquatic larval stage and land-dwelling adults. These insects play an important role in aquatic ecosystems and are excellent bioindicators. The present study was based on a scientometric analysis of the research available on the Odonata, which aimed to identify the principal trends and gaps in the database…
Dragonflies and damselflies (Odonata) from the wetland of the Rio Pandeiros, northern region of Minas Gerais State, Brazil, with a description of the male of Archaeogomphus vanbrinki Machado (Anisoptera: Gomphidae)
The Odonata from the Refúgio Estadual da Vida Silvestre do Rio Pandeiros (RVSP), located in the Cerrado domain, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, were rapidly surveyed. Sampling efforts were undertaken along the Rio Pandeiros margins during four sampling periods between the rainy (spring–summer) and dry seasons (autumn–winter) from July 2014 to April 2015. We sampled 97…
Odonata biodiversity of the Argentine Chaco biome
Odonates of small temporary pools, marshes, large permanent ponds, oxbow lakes, dams, and perennial rivers were sampled in the semiarid Chaco biome of NW Argentina between September 2007 and December 2008. Information from 35 localities yielded 60 species; presence/absence information of species was recorded in a spatial-relational database. Alpha, beta, and gamma diversity and total…
Comparison of two Odonata communities from a natural and a modified rainforest in Papua New Guinea
The Odonata fauna of Papua New Guinea is species-rich, but human population growth and resulting modification of primary rainforests may lead to a loss of valuable habitat and species diversity. In this study, I compared the odonate assemblages of a natural tropical rainforest and a modified forest in order to assess the loss that could…
Abundance and vertical distribution of a bromeliad-dwelling zygopteran larva, Mecistogaster modesta, in a Costa Rican rainforest (Odonata: Pseudostigmatidae)
We compared the larval abundance of Mecistogaster modesta between bromeliads at ground level and canopy level in a primary tropical wet forest. Zygopteran abundance correlated strongly with bromeliad diameter at both levels. Although the per-bromeliad zygopteran abundance did not differ between vertical levels, M. modesta showed a strong vertical distribution in abundance owing to the…
An annotated checklist of the Odonata of Brunei with ecological notes and descriptions of hitherto unknown males and larvae
This study records 175 species of odonates from Brunei, representing more than half the known Bornean fauna. Of these, 169 species were collected by the author and associates using a systematic sampling protocol at 35 sites throughout the country. Sites were located in diverse habitats: in primary forest, natural lakes and marshes and degraded areas.
The Gambia: Additions to the list of Odonata, and further distribution records
As a result of the British Dragonfly Society visit to The Gambia in Oct/Nov 1996, 13 species of Odonata were added to the 62 previously recorded, and distribution records of species increased by over 60%.
Environmental impacts from human activities affect the diversity of the Odonata (Insecta) in the Eastern Amazon
Land use influences the biodiversity of stream systems by changing the chemical composition of the water and the physical structure of the habitat. The present study evaluated the influence of these processes on the diversity metrics of Odonata at regional and local scales, testing the hypothesis that the two odonate suborders Anisoptera and Zygoptera will respond differently to habitat and landscape variables.
Odonata (Insecta) communities along an elevational gradient in the Atlantic forest of southeastern Brazil, with the description of the female of Heteragrion mantiqueirae Machado, 2006
Despite the important role of the order Odonata in ecosystems, there is a lack of information about dragonfly communities in several regions, high elevation sites, and environmentally protected areas in Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Our objective was to assess the abundance and richness of dragonfly and damselfly communities along an elevational gradient in the Atlantic Forest, southeastern Brazil.
Environmental variables affect the diversity of adult damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera) in western Amazonia
Our study evaluated the effects of environmental variables on the assemblages of the suborder Zygoptera, and tested the hypothesis that environmental variables are more important determinants of the structure of these assemblages than limnological variables in streams. We sampled 17 streams in the Carajás National Forest and tested our hypothesis using a linear regression analysis, with the zygopteran species composition, richness, and abundance as the response variables.