Great Moss Maiden
| Great Moss Maiden | ||||||||||||
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Great moss damsel ( Leucorrhinia pectoralis ), female |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Leucorrhinia pectoralis | ||||||||||||
| ( Charpentier , 1825) |
The great moss damsel ( Leucorrhinia pectoralis ) is a medium-sized dragonfly species from the family of the sailing dragonflies (Libellulidae) and is classified in the genus of the moss damsel ( Leucorrhinia ). The first description was made in 1825 using a male animal from Europe by Charpentier . The holotype on which this description is based is now in the Natural History Museum in Paris .
features
The great moss maiden reaches a body length of 3.5 to 4.5 centimeters and an average wingspan of 5.5 to 6.5 centimeters. At the base of the wings there is sometimes a black shadow, which can also be missing on the forewings. Typical for young males is the row of yellow spots on the segments of the abdomen, which, however, turn brown with increasing age. An exception to this is the last spot on segment 7, which is a typical yellow (lemon yellow) “bottom light” even in old animals. The “stocky” looking females, on the other hand, have large, dark yellow spots on the abdomen.
Similar species include the Nordic moss damsel ( Leucorrhinia rubicunda ) and the little moss damsel ( Leucorrhinia dubia ), both of which can also occur syntopically .
Habitat and way of life
Preferred development waters are sunlit, fish-free and mesotrophic still waters, especially in moor areas. The waters, e.g. B. abandoned peat cuttings require some open areas, completely overgrown bodies of water are avoided by the species.
The males usually behave lazily in the water and like to sit on vertical plant structures such as blades of grass, sedges, cattails or the fruit stands of cotton grass . However, vagabonding animals are not uncommon to be found away from developing waters. The flight time of the species is from early May to mid-July.
Mating begins in flight. Then the couple sit in the vegetation on the bank for about 15 minutes. The eggs are laid freely in the water under the guard of the male - in shallow, well-warming places over a dark background. The adults can cover long distances and they can also be found in waters that are hardly suitable for larvae to develop.
The larvae usually have a two or three year development time to emergence . However, a one-year larval development period could already be demonstrated, which is the exception. The larvae reach a body length of 20 to 22 mm.
Hazard and protection
According to the Federal Nature Conservation Act , the great moss damsel is "strictly protected", in the Fauna-Flora-Habitat Directive it is listed in Appendices II and IV.
The species is classified as "critically endangered" in Germany's Red List. The reasons for this are the drainage of ponds (frost effect on the pond floor), pollutant and nutrient inputs into water bodies, excessive fishing use, the destruction of underwater and bank vegetation or entire bodies of water (e.g. through backfilling), the complete silting of existing ones Larval waters and the drainage and peat of bogs.
literature
- Brohmer (1964): Fauna of Germany , Quelle & Meyer Verlag, Heidelberg
- Steinmann, H. (1997): World Catalog of Odonata II , de Gruyter, ISBN 3-11-014934-6
- Jurzitza, G. (2000): Der Kosmos-Libellenführer , Franckh-Kosmos Verlags GmbH & Co., Stuttgart, ISBN 3-440-08402-7
- Sternberg, K., F.-J. Schiel & R. Buchwald (2000): Leucorrhinia pectoralis (Charpentier, 1825) - Große Moosjungfer. Pp. 415-427. In: Sternberg / Buchwald (ed.): Die Libellen Baden-Württemberg. Volume 2: Dragonflies (Anisoptera). Ulmer, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-8001-3514-0
