Volume 20, 2017
Role of visual and non-visual cues in damselfly mate recognition
In many species of damselflies, sexual conflict in the form of male harassment is thought to explain the widespread existence of female-limited color polymorphisms. With a few exceptions, the majority of investigations into these mating systems have assumed that male damselflies primarily use visual cues to detect and recognize their mates. Recently, laboratory studies have…
A scientometric study of the order Odonata with special attention to Brazil
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…
Egg hatching phenology and success of Lestes macrostigma in two temporary brackish ponds
Although a full life cycle approach is optimally needed to make conservation decisions, the egg stage is often neglected for insect species of special conservation interest. Water management and related abiotic factors are relevant factors to consider in aquatic species. Lestes macrostigma is a threatened damselfly restricted to temporary brackish waters. Here we provide detailed…
Volume 20, Issue 1
Volume 20, Issue 2
Demographics and behaviour of Heteragrion cooki, a forest damselfly endemic to Ecuador (Odonata)
Damselflies adapted to forest habitats are expected to be negatively affected by the disturbance of riparian forests, due to the change in insolation when trees are cleared. In this paper, we compare survivorship and behaviour of two populations of Heteragrion cooki by means of mark-recapture methods and focal observations of adults. We found similar densities…
Telebasis igapocola sp. nov., a new damselfly from Amazonian Peru and Brazil (Odonata: Coenagrionidae)
To date 57 species of Telebasis have been described. Most are Neotropical species, only three extending North of Mexico. From Peru 17 species were known. Most are found in the Amazonian lowlands; two are known from higher elevations in the Andes. From Brazil 26 species were known. In this article another Neotropical species is described,…
The damselfly and dragonfly watercolour collection of Edmond de Selys Longchamps: II Calopterygines, Cordulines, Gomphines and Aeschnines
In the nineteenth century Edmond de Selys Longchamps added watercolours, drawings and notes to his extensive collection of dragonfly and damselfly specimens. The majority of illustrations were executed by Selys and Guillaume Severin. The watercolour collection is currently part of the collection of the Royal Belgian Institute for Natural Sciences in Brussels. This previously unpublished…
Perch selection in a guild of tropical dragonflies (Odonata: Libellulidae): relationships with body size and thermal ecology
In the temperate zone, male perch height of co-occurring dragonfly species (Odonata: Libellulidae) often correlates with species body size. I tested for this relationship in a guild of tropical dragonflies at a wetland at La Selva Biological Station, Heredia, Costa Rica. Males of 12 species were observed perching in January–February 2016. Mean male perch height…
Ontogenetic colour changes and male polymorphism in Mnais andersoni (Odonata: Calopterygidae)
Colour-based traits are widespread in flying species due to the importance of visual perception in their communication. Ontogenetic colour changes and reversible physiological colours occur in some species and are used as communication signals to conspecifics. The genus Mnais (Zygoptera: Calopterygidae) shows both genetic colour polymorphism and age-related colour changes, making challenging even the identification…
Volume 20, Issue 3-4
Description of the nymph of Gomphurus gonzalezi (Odonata: Gomphidae)
Gomphurus gonzalezi (Dunkle) is a locally distributed dragonfly ranging from the Lower Rio Grande in south Texas southward to San Luis Potosi state in northeastern Mexico. We describe and illustrate the nymph based on specimens from Hidalgo County, Texas. The palpal lobe of G. gonzalezi has 7–8 small teeth in a straight line with the…
Female color polymorphism of Ischnura capreolus Hagen, 1861 (Odonata: Coenagrionidae) with notes on behavior and ontogenetic color changes
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…
Odonata community structure and patterns of land use in the Atewa Range Forest Reserve, Eastern Region (Ghana)
Recent studies have indicated that frequent anthropogenic disturbances in tropical developing countries are primary drivers of reduction in community diversity and local extinction of many arthropods, including dragonflies. We assessed the impact of anthropogenic disturbances on odonate assemblages across three different land use types, in a biodiverse nature reserve in Ghana. A total of 37…
The female of Oreiallagma oreas (Odonata: Coenagrionidae), with notes on the species natural history
Oreiallagma oreas (Ris, 1918) is a recently rediscovered Colombian Andean endemic species, for which the information available is very scarce. It was originally described from a single male. Since 2008, O. oreas has been recorded in new localities but its life history remained unknown. Here we describe and diagnose the species female for the first…
Body temperature regulation in the dragonfly, Arigomphus villosipes (Odonata: Anisoptera: Gomphidae)
Regulation of thoracic muscle temperature has been investigated in a number of dragonfly species but is poorly known in the large and diverse family, Gomphidae. Moreover, temperatures of other body regions have been recorded in very few ectothermic insects. In addition, correlations among multiple components of thermoregulatory behavior have rarely been examined quantitatively. Here I…
Two new species of the family Philogeniidae (Odonata: Zygoptera) from the Western Colombian Andes
The family Philogeniidae was recently proposed as a monophyletic clade grouping the genera Philogenia and Archaeopodagrion. Here, two new species found during recent expeditions to the Western Colombian Andes are described, Archaeopodagrion fernandoi sp. nov. and Philogenia martae sp. nov. Also, Philogenia zeteki is recorded for the first time in Colombia. Natural history notes, a…
