Small royal dragonfly

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Small royal dragonfly
Little royal dragonfly (Anax parthenope), male

Little royal dragonfly ( Anax parthenope ), male

Systematics
Order : Dragonflies (Odonata)
Subordination : Dragonflies (Anisoptera)
Superfamily : Aeshnoidea
Family : Noble dragonflies (Aeshnidae)
Genre : Royal Dragonflies ( Anax )
Type : Small royal dragonfly
Scientific name
Anax parthenope
Selys , 1839

The small dragonfly ( Anax parthenope ) is a species of dragonfly from the family of the noble dragonflies (Aeshnidae), which belong to the suborder of the large dragonflies (Anisoptera). It is one of the largest dragonflies native to Central Europe with a maximum wingspan of eleven centimeters.

features

female

The small royal dragonfly is one of the largest dragonfly species in Central Europe , along with the large royal dragonfly ( Anax imperator ) and the great spring damsel ( Cordulegaster heros ). It reaches wing spans of 9.5 to 11 centimeters. The chest section ( thorax ) of the animals is brownish, the abdomen ( abdomen ) of the males is only in the front area light blue and otherwise dark to black, that of the females is brown with black rings. In contrast, the Great Royal Dragonfly has a green to blue breast and the abdomen is black on a blue background.

distribution

The distribution area of ​​the Lesser Royal Dragonfly covers large parts of Europe, Asia and North Africa. It extends from Europe south to the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa north of the Sahara and east to Siberia , India , China and Japan . The northernmost find so far comes from the region around Omsk in Siberia. In Europe, the northernmost occurrences come from Latvia , southern Sweden , eastern Ireland and the Orkney Islands north of Scotland .

Way of life

The small royal dragonfly is particularly widespread in southern Europe. It develops in stagnant waters, especially in larger ponds and lakes. In Central Europe, the species is also not rare regionally. B. quite often in the lake districts of northeast Germany or in the area of ​​the lakes of the Alpine foothills. Your flight time is between May and September. On her fighter flights she can move very far from the water.

Larva of the little royal dragonfly

In search of a female, the males fly persistently high above the water surface along the shoreline and also into the riparian vegetation. The eggs are almost always laid in tandem, with the female pricking the eggs into living or dead parts of the plant.

The larval development takes two years in Central Europe and only one year in the warmer waters of Southern Europe.

Systematics

The Small Königslibelle is a distinct species of the genus Anax within the aeshnidae (Aeschnidae). It was scientifically described in 1839 by the French naturalist Edmond de Selys-Longchamps .

Danger

The small royal dragonfly is listed in the IUCN Red List as not endangered (“least concern”). The classification is justified with the very large distribution area and the absence of any risks to the existence of the species.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d Gerhard Jurzitza: The Kosmos dragonfly guide . Franckh-Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-440-08402-7 .
  2. ↑ a b c Anax parthenope in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2018. Posted by: A. Mitra, V. Clausnitzer, 2010. Retrieved on May 17, 2020.

literature

  • Heiko Bellmann: Observe dragonflies - determine. Naturbuch Verlag, Augsburg 1993, ISBN 3-89440-107-9 .
  • Gerhard Jurzitza: The Kosmos dragonfly guide . Franckh-Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-440-08402-7 .
  • G. Peters: The noble dragonflies of Europe - Aeshnidae. (= Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei. Volume 585). Ziemsen, Lutherstadt Wittenberg 1987, ISBN 3-7403-0050-7 .
  • G. Peters: Unknown acquaintances: the Anax species in Europe (Odonata: Aeshnidae). In: Libellula. 19, 2000, pp. 53-64.
  • Klaus Sternberg: Anax parthenope Sélys, 1839 - Small royal dragonfly. In: Klaus Sternberg, Rainer Buchwald (Hrsg.): Die Libellen Baden-Württemberg. Volume 2: Dragonflies (Anisoptera). Ulmer, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8001-3514-0 , pp. 139-148.

Web links

Commons : Anax parthenope  - album with pictures, videos and audio files