ODONATA

Odonate life cycle. Click each stage to view details. insect order comprising the dragonflies (suborder Anisoptera) and the damselflies (suborder Zygoptera). The adults are easily recognized by their two pairs of narrow, transparent wings, sloping thorax, and long, usually slender body; the abdomen is almost always longer than any of the wings. Large, active by day, and often strikingly coloured, they are usually seen flying near water. Adult odonates are voracious predators, as are the aquatic larvae. The name dragonfly is commonly applied to all odonates, but it is also used to differentiate the suborder Anisoptera from the suborder Zygoptera. The order Odonata is small and well known; the total number of living species probably does not greatly exceed the 5,000 or so already described. Odonates are globally distributed from the tropics, where they are most numerous and varied, to the boreal forests of Siberia and North America. They are also found throughout the Southern Hemisphere, with the exception of Antarctica. While the basic structure of adults is uniform, coloration is highly variablehues range from metallic to dull, sometimes in combination. There is also a wide range of sizes; damselfly species have both the shortest and longest wingspansabout 18 mm and 19 cm (0.71 inch and 7.5 inches), respectively. However, some fossil ancestors of today's odonates had wingspans of more than 70 cm (28 inches). Dragonfly (Libellula forensis). Odonates are among the few insects that have secured a major place in folklore and art. In Japan, where a journal (Tombo) has been devoted to reports of their biology since 1958, dragonflies (Odonata) traditionally have been held in high regard. In other Asian cultures they are considered benign and auspicious, but in Europe they have often been perceived as threatening, even though they do not injure humans. Long-standing vernacular names such as horse stinger, snake doctor, and devil's darning needle testify to their formidable appearance. The young, termed larvae or sometimes nymphs, are functionally wingless and live in a variety of shallow freshwater habitats including tree holes, ponds, marshes, and streams. They are often bottom-dwelling and are well-camouflaged, their mottled or drab colours matching the sediments or water plants around them. Although large numbers of mosquitoes and other insect pests are consumed by larvae and adults, odonates are generally indiscriminate feeders that seldom affect humans economically. Larvae, however, have been used successfully in Myanmar to interrupt transmission of the mosquito-borne disease dengue. Additional reading Recommended resources fall into three categories: General sources that are commonly available to the public; Guides, which function as identification or classification aids but may not be commonly available outside of university and research libraries; and Technical, which address advanced topics in detail. General Books Philip S. Corbet, Dragonflies: Behavior and Ecology of Odonata (1999), a definitive and heavily illustrated source of information covering both dragonflies and damselflies.Ross E. Hutchins, The World of Dragonflies and Damselflies (1969), in addition to basic biological information, includes discussion of fossil ancestors and suggestions for collecting, identifying, and studying odonates.Rod Preston-Mafham and Ken Preston-Mafham, The Encyclopedia of Land Invertebrate Behaviour (1993), pp. 3542, includes a detailed discussion of odonate reproductive behaviour, in addition to other topics briefly touched upon. Video documentaries The Dragon & the Damsel (1983), written and produced by Pelham Aldrich-Blake. Narrated by Sir David Attenborough as part of the BBC natural history series Wildlife on One. Dragonfly (1988), produced by NHK Japan and TVOntario as part of the Nature Watch series. Guides The titles cited below are Classification guides, which treat taxonomic relationships among groups, and Field and identification guides, which are used to determine the name of a given specimen. Classification Frederick C. Fraser, A Reclassification of the Order Odonata (1957), the definitive work on classification.Charles A. Bridges, Catalogue of the Family-group, Genus-group, and Species-group Names of the Odonata of the World, 3rd ed. (1994), a definitive and comprehensive listing.Shigeru Tsuda, A Distribution List of World Odonata (1986), a catalog listing the countries in which all described species occur.Henrik Steinmann, World Catalogue of Odonata (1997), parts 110 and 111 of The Animal Kingdom series. A 2-volume set in which each volume is devoted to a living suborder, this is a largely historical rather than contemporary taxonomic compilation. Field and identification Richard R. Askew, The Dragonflies of Europe (1988). J.A.L. Watson, G. Theischinger, and H.M. Abbey, The Australian Dragonflies (1991).Viacheslav G. Mordkovich (ed.), Fauna i ekologiia strekoz (1989), on odonates of the former Soviet Union.Frederick C. Fraser, Odonata, 3 vol. (193336), in The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma series.James G. Needham and Minter J. Westfall, Jr., A Manual of the Dragonflies of North America (Anisoptera) (1954, reissued 1975).Minter J. Westfall, Jr., and Michael L. May, Damselflies of North America (1996).Elliot C.G. Pinhey, A Survey of the Dragonflies of Eastern Africa (1961).Elliot C.G. Pinhey, The Dragonflies of Southern Africa (1951, reprinted 1979). Technical The sources listed below are intended for odonatologists. Listings include both current and classic texts and articles. Philip S. Corbet, A Biology of Dragonflies (1962, reprinted 1983), a college-level textbook emphasizing ecology and behaviour.Robin J. Tillyard, The Biology of Dragonflies (Odonata or Paraneuroptera) (1917), a classic college-level textbook emphasizing systematics and functional morphology.Jonathan K. Waage, Sperm Competition and the Evolution of Odonate Mating Systems, in Robert L. Smith (ed.), Sperm Competition and the Evolution of Animal Mating Systems (1984). Syoziro Asahina, A Morphological Study of a Relic Dragonfly Epiophlebia superstes Selys (Odonata, Anisozygoptera) (1954), a comprehensive study of one of the two living fossil species of the family Epiophlebiidae. Norman W. Moore, Dragonflies (1997), status survey and conservation action plan for endangered dragonflies, as proposed by the Odonata Specialist Group of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).Frank M. Carpenter, Superclass Hexapoda, vol. 34 (1992), in Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology, Part R, Arthropoda 4, a review of odonate paleontology.Philip S. Corbet, A Brief History of Odonatology, Advances in Odonatology, 5:2144 (1991). Philip S. Corbet