Volume 19, 2016
Pre-emergent movements and survival of F-0 larvae of Ophiogomphus rupinsulensis (Odonata: Gomphidae) in a northern Wisconsin river
We marked and released 276 F-0 larvae of Ophiogomphus rupinsulensis in the fall of 2008 in a 99-m riffle (marking riffle) of a small, serially discontinuous, northern Wisconsin river (USA). We then recovered marked exuviae via exhaustive collecting on the banks of a 272-m sampling reach in which the marking riffle was located during spring…
Life history and secondary production of the Chinese endemic damselfly Euphaea opaca (Odonata: Euphaeidae)
Euphaea opaca Selys, 1853 is an endemic damselfly to China, but little is known about its biology and ecology. In this study, we investigated the life history and secondary production of E. opaca in a third order subtropical stream of Guangdong, China. Larvae were collected monthly from October 2010 to September 2011 using a Surber…
Description of the final stadium larva of Philoganga vetusta Ris, with discussion of the taxonomic characters of the larvae of the genus Philoganga Kirby (Odonata: Philogangidae)
The final stadium larva of Philoganga vetusta Ris is described and illustrated in detail. The larva of supposed P. vetusta from Hong Kong is confirmed, and that of Philoganga sp. from Fujian can be determined to be P. robusta. The taxonomic characters and systematic status of the larvae of genus Philoganga are discussed and summarized….
Redescription of the holotype of Mecistogaster pronoti Sjöstedt, 1918 (Zygoptera: Pseudostigmatidae)
Mecistogaster pronoti Sjöstedt, 1918 was described based on a female holotype deposited in the Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Stockholm, collected in the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil. The original description has no illustrations, which makes its identification very difficult. Herewith we redescribe and illustrate this holotype. The species is red listed and considerations regarding its conservation are…
First record of extra-abdominal processes in adult Odonata
Paired extra-abdominal processes (ap) were found in the pleural region of abdominal segments 6–9 in adult Odonata for the first time. They are unsegmented bulge-like or rod-like structures of different size, degree of sclerotization and movability. A short search across odonatan families has shown that ap are inherent for all studied Aeshnidae and for some…
New status for Fraser’s forgotten Aciagrion approximans krishna, stat. nov. (Odonata: Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae) from the Western Ghats of India
Aciagrion Selys, 1891 is one of the taxonomically difficult and poorly known genera of Oriental damselflies. Aciargion hisopa race krishna Fraser, 1921 was described from Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra, India. However, later Fraser (1933) doubted the taxonomic necessity of this taxon. His notion of Aciagrion hisopa (Selys, 1876) was erroneous, as evidenced by syntypes of this species…
Redescription of Erythrodiplax pallida (Needham, 1904) (Odonata: Libellulidae)
A redescription of both sexes of Erythrodiplax pallida (Odonata: Libellulidae) is provided based on specimens collected in shallow wetlands associated with flood plains from small streams to large rivers in Corrientes and Buenos Aires provinces, Argentina. The vesica spermalis morphology resembles those of the basalis and nigricans groups due to the presence of median and…
Microneura is a junior synonym of Protoneura (Zygoptera, Coenagrionidae)
Microneura caligata (Hagen in Selys, 1886) is an endangered damselfly presently known from five localities in the central mountains of Cuba. The precise systematic position of this species within the former Neotropical Protoneuridae has been the subject of debate, with previous results from a phylogenetic analysis based on morphology suggesting that the genus Microneura should…
A hotspot for threatened Mediterranean odonates in the Seybouse River (Northeast Algeria): are IUCN population sizes drastically underestimated?
Several odonate species are threatened in the Mediterranean basin and some of them show alarming decreasing trends. The distribution and population estimations provided by the IUCN are based on occasional field sampling or non-rigorous methodologies and could be erroneous and misleading. To obtain reliable estimations of the population size and distribution of three threatened species,…
Pseudagrion woodlarkensis sp. nov., a new damselfly species from Woodlark Island, Papua New Guinea (Odonata: Coenagrionidae)
Pseudagrion woodlarkensis sp. nov., a new damselfly species from Woodlark Island, Papua New Guinea, is described and male and female characters are illustrated. The new species differs from all regional congeners by having a predominantly yellow thorax with bold black stripes, and males can be clearly distinguished from all Papuan Pseudagrion species by the complex…
Volume 19, Issue 1-2
Volume 19, Issue 3
A description of the larva and discussion of radiation in the phytotelm breeding damselfly genus Papuagrion in New Guinea (Odonata: Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae)
The larva of Papuagrion is described and illustrated for the first time based on two specimens collected near Goroka, Papua New Guinea. The larvae were identified by matching the mitochondrial marker COI with that of an adult specimen collected at the same locality. The larvae were found in the leaf axils of Pandanus trees which…
Reproductive behaviour of a North African endemic damselfly, Platycnemis subdilatata (Odonata: Platycnemididae) and probable senescence effects
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…
The damselfly and dragonfly watercolour collection of Edmond de Selys Longchamps: I Agrionines
In the nineteenth century Edmond de Selys Longchamps assembled a collection consisting of watercolours, drawings and notes on Odonata. Most illustrations were based on specimens from his extensive odonate collection and were mainly executed by Selys himself and by Guillaume Severin. These illustrations and notes are presently housed in the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural…
Dragonflies (Insecta: Odonata) as indicators of habitat quality in Mediterranean streams and rivers in the province of Barcelona (Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula)
In a field study carried out in 2011 and 2014 adult dragonflies were identified as a rapid and easy-to-use means of assessing habitat quality and biological integrity of Mediterranean streams and rivers in the province of Barcelona (Region Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula). The study included sampling sites from five different river catchments: Besòs, Foix, Llobregat, Ter…
The factors influencing the length of the terrestrial period in the final instar larvae of Epiophlebia superstes (Selys, 1889) (Anisozygoptera: Epiophlebiidae)
The terrestrial period before adult eclosion of the final instar larvae of Epiophlebia superstes was studied during spring 2008 to 2012, at a mountain stream in Nurukawa, Aomori prefecture, northern Japan. The average terrestrial period of larvae that left the water during early, middle and late April, estimated by mark-release-recapture and caging methods, was 45.3…
Volume 19, Issue 4
A description of the larva of Mesopodagrion tibetanum australe (Odonata: “Megapodagrionidae”)
The larva of the genus Mesopodagrion was identified with the help of DNA barcoding and described for the first time. The larvae have flat horizontal gills resembling those of Argiolestidae but the adults lack setae on the shaft of the genital ligula. Molecular data are shown to be useful and necessary in larval identification and…
Distribution, ecology and status of a threatened species Ischnura intermedia (Insecta: Odonata), new for Europe
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…
Predation of Telebasis vulnerata (Odonata: Coenagrionidae) eggs by detritivorous caddisfly larva, Phylloicus pulchrus (Trichoptera: Calamoceratidae)
After observing the presence of Phylloicus pulchrus (Trichoptera: Calamoceratidae) and tadpoles of Leptodactylus albilabris (Anura: Leptodactylidae) on submerged leaves with recently laid eggs of Telebasis vulnerata (Odonata: Coenagrionidae), we set up an experiment to determine if they were consuming Odonata eggs. We collected leaves from the stream, where consumers were positioned over egg masses, and…
Three new species of the genus Ceylonosticta Fraser, 1931 (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from Sri Lanka and the rediscovery of Ceylonosticta subtropica (Fraser, 1933)
Three new species of Ceylonosticta are described and illustrated: Ceylonosticta nancyae sp. nov., Ceylonosticta rupasinghe sp. nov. and Ceylonosticta alwisi sp. nov. from Samanala Nature Reserve (Adam’s Peak), Kuruwita-Erathna footpath, Ratnapura District, Sri Lanka. Ceylonosticta subtropica has been recorded for the first time after 83 years and the first depiction of its genital ligula is…
Morphological re-examination of Epiophlebia laidlawi (Insecta: Odonata) including remarks on taxonomy
Epiophlebia is the only known taxon of Odonata that is neither part of the damselflies (Zygoptera) nor dragonflies (Anisoptera). Previously, two species of Epiophlebia were recognized, restricted to areas in Japan (Epiophlebia superstes) and the Himalayas (Epiophlebia laidlawi). Recently, the group gained attention with the description of new species from China – Epiophlebia sinensis and Epiophlebia…
Effects of exotic tree plantations on the richness of dragonflies (Odonata) in Atlantic Forest, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
One of the forest types occurring in Southern Brazil is the mixed ombrophilous forest (MOF), a subtype of the Atlantic Forest, which is one of the richest biomes on Earth. This biome currently remains as a highly fragmented mosaic, under pressure from human development. The diversity and ecology of most animal groups in this biome…
The probable function of abdominal contractions and liquid drops during the emergence of Zygoptera and Anisoptera (Odonata)
The transition between larval and adult stage in amphibious insects is called emergence. During emergence abdominal contractions and excretion of liquid drops can be observed in several insect orders. Since the function of these processes is not yet known in odonates, this study examines the probable function of abdominal contractions and excretion of liquid drops…
The complete mitochondrial genome of the broad-winged damselfly Mnais costalis Selys (Odonata: Calopterygidae) obtained by next-generation sequencing
We used next-generation sequencing to characterise the complete mitochondrial genome of the damselfly Mnais costalis (Odonata, Calopterygidae). Illumina paired end reads were mapped against COI and 16S sequences from M. costalis and then extended using an iterative de novo map procedure. The final assembly was a contiguous sequence of 15,487 bp, which contained all standard mitochondrial…
Survival is predicted by territorial status but not wing pigmentation in males of a polythorid damselfly, Euthore fasciata (Odonata: Zygoptera: Polythoridae)
Robust male condition must be favored and should be signaled to conspecifics via enhanced aggression and more highly expressed ornamental traits. One way that such robust condition, and thereby the expression of aggression and ornamental traits, can be assessed is via survival. In odonate adults, condition (in the form of lipid reserves, muscle mass and…
