Out of Australia: the Argiolestidae reveal the Melanesian Arc System and East Papua Composite Terrane as possible ancient dispersal routes to the Indo-Australian Archipelago (Odonata: Argiolestidae)

Information on the origin of distribution patterns shown by freshwater invertebrates in the Indo-Australian Archipelago is poor. Here we present a molecular based hypothesis of the phylogenetic relationships of Argiolestidae, a family of damselflies found throughout the tropical parts of the Eastern Hemisphere. We use this to address the following questions: (1) did Argiolestidae colonize…

Austroaeschna ingrid sp. nov. from Victoria, Australia (Odonata: Telephlebiidae)

Austroaeschna ingrid, a new telephlebiid from the Grampians in Victoria, Australia, is described (holotype: McKenzie Falls, 21-23 January 2008, to be deposited in Museum of Victoria, Melbourne). This species is most similar to A. Christine, A. multipunctata and A. obscura but may be distinguished by the length and slenderness of the male anal appendages, particularly…

Critical species of Odonata in Australia

The Australian Odonata fauna is reviewed. The state of the current taxonomy and ecology, studies on biodiversity, studies on larvae and the all identification keys are reported. The conservation status of the Australian odonates is evaluated and the endangered species identified. In addition the endemic species, species with unusual biology and species, not threatened yet,…

Underwater and epilithic oviposition by Australian Aeshnidae (Odonata)

In this article we report underwater oviposition and epilithic oviposition in Anisoptera. We observed Notoaeschna sagittata totally submerged ovipositing on bare rock in the fast current of a rapid. Dendroaeschna conspersa oviposited also underwater, but into wood submerged in very clear water.

WDA to host virtual event on 15 July

In view of the ICO2021 postponement to 2023, the WDA is organizing a virtual online event for 15th July 2021. The meeting will take place on Zoom and will commence at 10 AM GMT. There will be the screening of the winners of the short videos of field work contest, plenary talks by members about (more…)

Editorial Board

Editor John C. Abbott, The University of Alabama, USA (jabbott1 at ua.edu) Editorial Board (Content Editors) Chris Beatty, Cornell University, USA (Christopher.beatty at cornell.edu), Behavioral Ecology, Biogeography, Life History, Population Ecology Cornelio Bota-Sierra, The University of Alabama, USA (corneliobota at gmail.com), South American Taxonomy, Physiology, Biogeography Jason Bried, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA (bried (more…)

History of dragonfly flight

From their earliest appearance in the fossil record, dragonflies have clearly taken a different approach to flight than other insect groups. Even the superficially similar Neuroptera do not fly like dragonflies. Flight specialisation has enabled dragonflies to occupy a range of niches, as specialised predators of flying insects, for around 300 My.