The final instar larva of Rhionaeschna vigintipunctata (Ris) (Odonata, Aeshnidae) is described for the first time. The description is based on a series of mature female larvae collected in Tucumán (NW Argentina) and reared to imago. It shares the U-shaped distal excision of epiproct with other larvae of the Marmaraeschna group (only R. pallipes and R. brevicercia known from this stage); but the...

Drepanosticta machadoi sp. nov. (Holotype ♂: Dablin Creek, Hindenburg Range) from Papua New Guinea is described. The new species is a predominantly black damselfly, the male with four pale/bright pattern elements on each side of the synthorax, dorsum of segments 9 and 10 largely bright blue, and a uniquely shaped posterior lobe of the pronotum which is a wide-angled fork with rather straight, n...

Evaluating components of landscape diversity is essential for the implementation of efficient conservation strategies. We evaluated the diversity of Odonata larval assemblages from the Coalcomán mountains (CM), Michoacán, Mexico, and related it to local (site-level) habitat variables. Larvae were collected from shores, riffles and pools in five streams, counted and identified to species, twice ...

Male mating success is often determined by territory ownership and traits associated with successful territory defense. Empirical studies have shown that the territory owner wins the majority of fights with challenging males. Several physical and physiological traits have been found to correlate with resource holding potential. In addition, in aerial insects, wing design may also have a strong ...

While the monophyly of winged insects (Pterygota) is well supported, phylogenetic relationships among the most basal extant pterygote lineages are problematic. Ephemeroptera (mayflies) and Odonata (dragonflies) represent the two most basal extant lineages of winged insects, and determining their relationship with regard to Neoptera (remaining winged insects) is a critical step toward understand...

Patagonia is a vast landmass with a distinctive environmental and biotic heterogeneity. Its Odonata biodiversity is the best known of South America, and it is composed of 36 species, of which more than 50% are endemic. We summarize the main taxonomic, distributional and biological information including illustrated keys for adults and known larvae, and distributional maps.

Climate change is expected to have substantial impacts on the composition of freshwater communities, and many species are threatened by the loss of climatically suitable habitat. In this study we identify Australian Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) vulnerable to the effects of climate change on the basis of exposure, sensitivity and pressure to disperse in the future. We used an ensemble o...

Relatively little information is available on environmental associations and the conservation of Odonata in the Maltese Islands. Aquatic habitats are normally spatio-temporally restricted, often located within predominantly rural landscapes, and are thereby susceptible to farmland water management practices, which may create additional pressure on water resources. This study investigates how od...

Directional asymmetry (DA) has received considerably less attention than fluctuating asymmetry (FA) in the literature. Evid ence for D A, howev er, is building am ong insect tax a. We ex amined as ymmetries in two wing traits within both sex es of the dam selfly Calopte ryx mac ulata (Beauvois) (Odonata: Calopterygidae), sampled from three sites in southeastern Ontario. After accounting for mea...

The larva of Aphylla protracta is described and figured. It is characterized by 3rd antennomere subcylindrical, flattened on ventral surface, 4.2 times longer than its widest part. Abdomen with dorsal protuberances well developed on S2-4, reduced on S5, vestigial or absent on S6-9; lateral spines lacking entirely, tergites 5-8 with minute reddish setae, tergite 9 with abundant, small, reddish s...