A p u b lication o f the M ichigan Od o nata Su rvey
V olu me 8 Issu e 1
Winter 20 0 4 W i lli a m s o n i a
W h a t ’ s i n a N a m e : W h e n i s a n A e s h n a n o t a n A e s h n a ?
By M ark O ’Brien
M any of the readers of Williamsonia w ill recall m y previous w ritings on the use of "com m on" nam es versus the Latinized binom ials that have long been in use. Som e of these nam es, quite obviously, date from the tim e of Linnaeus. The system of binom ial nom enclature defines not only a species, but its supposed relation to other entities. So, for exam ple, although there are m any dragonflies know n as darners, that term encom passes an entire fam ily, the A eshnidae. N ow , w ithin the A eshnidae, there are quite a few genera and m any, m any species. A C yrano The Spatterdock D arner, although an appropriate com m on nam e, does not tell us that it is in its ow n genus Nasi- D arner, A eshna m u- aeschna, not Aeshna. Likew ise, the Sw am p D arner, Epiaeschna heros, is not in the genus Aeshna. tata, is related to all The m osiac darners, genus Aeshna, are w hat m any people typically think of w hen the w ord the other members of darner com es to m ind. The Spatterdock D arner, Aeshna mutata, is related to all the other m em - the genus Aeshna. O r bers of the genus Aeshna. O r m aybe not. The study of system atics seeks to find relationships am ong taxonom ic units and to ferret out the evolutionary history of a group of anim als. N ot maybe not. only how are they related, but from w here did they evolve? W hat lineage produced a certain genus or group of closely-related species? In the past, this has not been exactly a precise sci- ence, but w ith m odern tools, cladistic m ethodology, and plenty of specim ens to w ork w ith, the science has becom e m uch m ore respectable.
N ow , back to w hat I started this discussion about. There are tw enty species of A eshnidae in M ichigan, in seven genera. The m ost speciose, the genus Aeshna, contains 12 species in M ichi- gan. W ell, not any m ore. N atalia V on Ellenrieder -- a talented and extrem ely hard-w orking A rgentinian system atist-- had her paper about South A m erican Aeshna published in 2003. W hat does a paper on non-N orth A m erican m osiac darners have to do w ith all of this? W ell, it turns out that N atalia's w ork on the genus Aeshna in South A m erica has revealed that the genus Aeshna is not m onophyletic. In other w ords, there are m any branches in the fam ily tree, and som e nearby shrubs are not w hat they seem . In essence, there are several sim ilar-looking (at (Continued on page 2)
O d e s i n S u ri n a m e
By Stephen R oss
I have had the good fortune to visit the little country of Surinam e three tim es, the first tw o on V ictor Em anuel N ature Tours (V EN T, 2002 and 2003). O n these tw o trips, I w as in the drier portions of the country w here dragonfly view ing w as not the best, though there w ere a few .
H ow ever, in O ctober 2003, I w as invited to go along w ith one of the V EN T guides on a tw o-m an tour w hile he did som e scouting for future (Continued on page 3) Probable U racis infumata in Surinam e. Photo: Steve R oss Williamsonia P age 2
W h a t ’s i n a N a m e : W h e n i s a n A es hna n o t a n A es hna ? (c o n t .)
(Continued from page 1) the other species in the genus. N ow , w ith N atalia's analysis first glance) groups of South A m erican A eshna-like species of the group, it is placed in a different genus, and probably that do not share a com m on ancestor w ith the northern ge- quite correctly. nus Aeshna. H er phylogenetic analyses have led her to recom - m end that the genus Aeshna be restricted to the H olarctic The generic nam e Rhionaeschna is used because Friedrich För- species, and that the N eotropical species of Aeshna be as- ster first described a South A m erican m em ber of this group, signed to the genus Rhionaeschna. That m eans that tw o com - and gave it the nam e Rhionaeschna (in 1909). Rhion apparently m on N orth A m erican species w ill be placed into the genus com es from the G reek m eaning "headland" or jutting m oun- Rhionaeschna because of their relationship to the South tain peak, w hich m akes sense for m any of these species, as A m erican species. From here on, Aeshna mutata H agen they com e from m ontane regions. R. mutata is closely related (Spatterdock D arner) and Aeshna multicolor H agen w ill be to 3 other species, including the w estern R. multicolor. The know n as Rhionaeschna mutata (H agen) and Rhionaeschna multi- other tw o species are found in the SW U SA , M exico and color (H agen). These are know n in the system atics literature C entral A m erica.
as new combinations, m eaning that they have been reas- So, after all of this, w hat do w e do about it? W e sim ply use signed to a different genus. A lthough I am sure som e w ill be the new nam e in our literature, checklists, and so on. It's still puzzled over all this, and w ish it w ould go aw ay, I find it the Spatterdock D arner for those of you that are w orried very exciting that w e have in our m idst a representative of a predom inantly South A m erican group of darners. Think about com m on nam es, and Rhionaeschna mutata rolls off the about it -- the Spatterdock D arner has alw ays been unusual tongue pretty easily, too. N ow w e have eight genera of A esh- com pared to the other Aeshna species. It prefers w ell- nidae in M ichigan, by the w ay...
vegetated fishless ponds (and these are often tem porary), em erges quite early in the season (as early as m id-M ay in Literature C ited som e years) it eyes are a cobalt blue (unlike other darners), its thoracic m arkings less defined than the other species, and V on Ellenrieder, N . 2003. A synopsis of the neotropical spe- does not get very far north in M ichigan. So, w ithout external cies of 'Aeshna' Fabricius: The genus Rhionaeschna Förster evidence, I have alw ays felt that Aeshna mutata stood out from (O donata: A eshnidae). Tidjschrift voor Entomologie: 146:67-208.
R e v i e w : A F i e ld G u i d e t o t h e D ra g o n fli e s a n d D a m s e lfli e s o f M a s s a ch u s e t t s
By Julie C raves for dam selflies, and it is the first A Field G uide to the D ragonflies and D amselflies of M assachusetts by field guide to cover fem ales Blair N ikula, Jennifer L. Loose, and M atthew R . Burne. 2003. thoroughly. Burne did a stun- M assachusetts D ivision of Fisheries and W ildlife. ning job illustrating the m ale term inal appendages of the Sid D unkle’s D ragonflies Through Binoculars spaw ned a popular spreadw ings (Lestes) and pond interest in odonata that has resulted in the publication of a dam sels (Enallagma, Coenagion, spate of state odonota field guides, including several from the Chromagrion, Ischnura, and Argia), neighboring states of O hio and W isconsin. Though not close the thoracic patterns of the m o- by, M assachusetts shares m any of M ichigan’s odonata, so A saic darners (Aeshna) including Field G uide to the D ragonflies and D amselflies of M assachusetts is of the pattern on abdom inal segm ent 2, the term inal append- interest to state dragonfly afficionados. ages of m ale pond clubtails and snaketails (G omphus, Ariogom- phus and O phiogomphus) and em eralds (Somatochlora). They This guide covers all 166 species from M assachusetts w ith full should have let him illustrate each species! color photographs. I’m unconvinced that photographs are the best w ay to illustrate an odonata field guide. A lthough these The species accounts are adequate, but som ew hat disap- photos are m ostly high quality, there are no arrow s pointing pointing. Length for each species is not given. Instead, each out im portant field m arks. The guide gets high m arks for account includes a black bar representing the length. O thers show ing both sexes of m ost species. This is especially helpful (Continued on page 4) Williamsonia P age 3
O d e s i n S u r i n a m e (c o n t .)
(Continued from page 1) cies, a few of w hich that, had I had a long net, I m ight have trips. This is the w ay to travel, just the tw o of us, changing been able capture. M ost prom inent w as likely the Seaside plans w henever w e needed and going off at the spur of the m o- D ragonlet (Erythrodiplax berenice), quite com m on along the m ent w ithout w aiting for anyone else (plus the lack of w hin- coasts and estuaries in the C aribbean. ers, m otor-m ouths, snorers, and other annoyances). A t the tim e of year of this trip it is the dry season. I really didn’t ex- Preceding this trip, w e had spent several days in the central pect to see m uch in dragonflies, but w as pleasantly surprised. part of the southeast section of the country. Palem eu w ill not appear on your atlas, but you m ight be able to find the join- I’ll start w ith the Surinam e R iver part of the trip. It w as our ing of the Palem eu and Tapanahony R ivers on a good one. objective to hire a boat a and travel som e 30 or so kilom eters W hile not great for dragonflies either, it w as the best place I up river, looking for birding sites. The river is one of five large have found in Surinam e. The rivers of Surinam e are quite rivers in Surinam e, is about 0.5 to 0.75 km w ide, and em pties sterile, being “black-w ater” rivers due to the high am ount of from the central G uyanan shield of the country at the port and tannins. The rivers are indeed coffee-black. A lso, not condu- capitol of Param aribo. Param aribo is not a particularly pretty cive to dragonflies in these rivers is that the fish are m ostly place, but it is a fascinating m ix of South-A sian, D utch, piranhas. H ow ever, there w ere about eight dragonfly species Indonesian, A frican, C hinese, H indu, Islam ic, and Jew ish that hovered around the boat . I have never seen an A nsiop- cultures. A fter m ajor m otor trouble w ith the boat, w hich tera in the w oodlands of Surinam e, w hich are presum ably too necessitated w aiting over an hour in the predaw n grit and dark. H ow ever, an occasional dam sel is found along the trails flotsam (both on the w ater and of hum anity), and getting a in sunny spots. knife pulled on m y traveling partner, D avid, plus a R astifari proudly exhibiting him self to the passing w om en, w e got O ne finds few ponds and pools in the “jungle” as the soils in going. the w oodlands are thin. The take-up of w ater is rapid, either w hen scarce in the dry season or as runoff in the rainy season. A fter several hot hours in the tropical sun running up channels W e did, how ever, find one birding location near the Palem eu looking for birds, w e pulled off at one site along the bank and airstrip that had a substantial drying sw am p, around w hich just took a look around (and do w hat needed to be done). The w ere a num ber of bright red O rthemis (?) dragonflies. These only dam selfly (M ecistogaster?) I saw here, and a very uncoop- w ere quite accom m odating for pictures, m uch like our Ery- erative one at that, appeared conservatively five inches long. themis. I just stuck a stick at the edge of the pond and w ithin U nfortunately, this one offered only a few good looks at close tw o m inutes, one took up a post at the tip. range, but w as not having anything to do w ith being photo- graphed before disappearing into the vine tangles after a m od- A ll in all, I w ouldn’t go to Surinam e for dragonflies. The at- est chase. W ith snakes being a com m on w orry, I did not fol- traction is certainly the birding, w hich is quite good, but low it. O ver the river, there w ere a num ber of A nisoptera spe- dragonflies do m ake for a w orthw hile diversion.
R eview : D rago nflies o f the No rth Wo o d s
By M ark O ’Brien
O ver the past four years, w e have been seeing an abundance of books on O donata, and the new est guide is an exciting and very useful addition to the literature. D ragonflies of the Northwoods by K urt M ead, is the guide to the dragonflies of northern M innesota, W isconsin, M ichigan and the adjacent region of O ntario. It is w ell-illustrated w ith photographs of each species and often includes additional closeups of pertinent m orphological features. The sections on adult m orphology and biology are excellent, w ith very good illus- trations. The descriptive text for each of the 102 species includes inform ation on habitats, behavioral infor- m ation, sim ilar species, and often there is a sidebar w ith interesting notes ("N ature N otes") about a spe- cies. The m ain photograph for a species show s a good lateral view , and a sim ple graphic accom panying the photo show s the adult flight period, relative abundance, and a size bar. A habitat synopsis below the m ain photo provides everything you need for quickly looking up inform ation. The book also has a nice sec- tion on observing, collecting, and photographing these interesting insects.
A ppendices in the back of the book show phenology of all the species at a glance, a checklist, a list of O do- nata groups and w ebsites, and a list of binoculars suitable for dragonfly w ork. A glossary and an index greatly aid the less fam il- (Continued on page 4) Williamsonia P age 4
R e v i e w : A F ield G uide to the D ra gonflies a nd D a m s elflies of M a s s a chus etts (co n t .)
(Continued from page 2) m ay find this easier to assim ilate, but I find it frustrating. D escriptions appear thorough, but do not alw ays em phasize key iden- tification features; putting them in bold w ould have been helpful. A lthough it is evident in the photo, no m ention is m ade of the yellow w ing tips on Slender Spreadw ings (Lestes rectagularis), w hich I find to be a handy field m ark. A dditional inform ation is given for range (overall) and status (in M assachusetts), habitat, and notes. Flight period graphics for each species are pretty general.
N otes are of m ixed utility. For exam ple, each spreadw ing account repeats the sam e sentence on perching posture, w hich seem s redundant especially considering it is included in the introductory m aterial on the fam ily. (The introductions to each fam ily are good, giving inform ation on basic structure and habits.) O n the other hand, inform ation on w hich species are tolerant of de- graded habitats is very useful. Som e statem ents I w onder about. The guide states that Sw am p D arner (Epiaeschna heros) m ales do not patrol at breeding sites, but I have w atched them do so in K entucky. The lack of robust notes is probably not so m uch the fault of the authors as the relative paucity of detailed know ledge of the ecology of m any odonata species.
This guide is m ore field-friendly than the currently available regional guides. The Color G uide to Common D ragonflies of W isconsin (K . Legler, D . Legler, D . W estover, 1998) is a bulky, 6.75 x 8.5 inch stapled paper. D ragonflies and D amselflies of Northeast O hio is spiral bound and reasonably-sized (5.75 x 8.5), but the paper pages get pretty battered in m y pack. M y favorite, the D ragonflies and D amselflies of O hio ( R . G lotzhober and D . M cShaffrey, 2002) w ith its excellent keys is an 8.5 x 11 inch behem oth that stays in the car. The M assachusetts guide is 6.25 x 8, spiral bound, w ith a fairly sturdy, glossy, cover. Pages are also glossy paper, perhaps not rugged but m aybe a little m ore w ater resistant for pondside perusals.
O verall, this is a nice field guide. A t this point in the relatively young “hobby” of dragonflying, w e can all benefit from having as m any field guides as possible. I know A N Y com petent guide to dam selflies is a w elcom e addition to m y library. This guide is available for $20.00 (a great price for a full-color guide) from : M assachusetts N atural H eritage Program , 1 R abbit H ill R oad W estborough, M A 01581.
D ra gonflies of the N orth W oods ( c o n t .)
(Continued from page 3) iar, too. This is the dragonfly book that the G reat lakes region has w aited for, and I com m end the author on the thoroughness and utility of his effort. W hether you are a dedicated O dona- tologist, casual observer, or just beginning, this book belongs in your back pocket. Yes, it is sized appropriately to fit in a pocket so that you can take it in the field w ith you. A fter all, this IS a field guide, and I think you w ill soon find that it be- com es a travelling com panion on your next field trip. You bet- ter buy tw o, because inevitably, one w ill either get "borrow ed" or it w ill end up a victim of a fall into a bog or stream .
I really cannot find any fault w ith this book. The photos are good for identification, the text is concise, accurate and infor- m ative, and the layout and printing are excellent. K urt has ob- viously put som e thought into w hat m akes a good guide, and has probably incorporated all of our gripes about the other guides (or lack thereof) to produce a w ell-done field guide that sets the bar. I know som e m ay gripe about the lack of larval inform ation, but 95% of the people buying this book are inter- ested only in the flying adults. I think D ragonflies of the N orth W oods w ill be TH E dragonfly field guide for the G reat Lakes M ocha Em erald (Somatochlora linearis), Louisville, K Y, 28 July region in the com ing years. 2002. Photo by Julie C raves. W illiam sonia P age 5 R ecent L iteratu re Baird, J. M . and M . L. M ay. 2003. Fights at the dinner table: agnostic behavior in Pachydiplax longipennis (Odonata: Libellulidae) at feeding sites. Jrl. Insect Behavior 16: 189-216. – D escribes aggressive behaviors of Blue D ashers at foraging areas.
C lausnitzer, V . 2003. D ragonfly communities in coastal habitats of K enya: indication of biotope quality and the need for conservation measures. Biodiversity and Conservation 12: 333-356. – Exam ines species diversity and identifies indicator species.
C ordoba-A guilar, A ., J. C . Salam anca-O cana, and M . Lopezaraiza. 2003. Female reproductive decisions and parasite burden in a calop- teryid damselfly (Insecta: Odonata). Animal Behaviour 66: 81-87. – Study in Spain dem onstrated that fem ale Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis w ith m ore intestinal parasites (as indicated by a negative correlation w ith w ing pigm entation) had low er reproductive success.
D e Block, M . and R . Stoks. 2003. A daptive sex-specific life history plasticity to temperature and photoperiod in a damselfly. Jrl. Evol. Biology. 16:986-995. – Exam ined how tem perature, photoperiod, and sex affected the foraging activity and grow th rate of the G reen Em erald Spreadw ing, Lestes viridis.
Freeland, J. R . , M . M ay R . Lodge, and K . F. C onrad. 2003. G enetic diversity and w idespread haplotypes in a migratory dragonfly, the common green darner A nax junius. Ecological Entomology 28: 413-421. – Found a relatively high genetic diversity for a m igratory species, sug- gesting adaptability to a range of environm ental conditions.
H uang, D ., A . N el, and Q . Lin. 2003. A new genus and species of aeshnopteran dragonfly from the Low er C retaceous of C hina. Cretaceous Research 24: 141-147.– A fossil dragonfly nam ed Parapetala liaoningensis is discovered in C hina.
K auppinen, J. and J. M appes. 2003. Why are w asps so intimidating: field experiments on hunting dragonflies (Odonata: A eshna gran- dis). Animal Behaviour 66:505-511. – The dragonfly Brow n H aw ker avoids preying on insects that are striped black-and-yellow and shaped like w asps. Johansson, F. 2003. Latitudinal shifts in body size of Enallagma cyathigerum (Odonata). Jrl. Biogeography 30: 29-34. – Sam ples of N orthern Bluet/C om m on Blue D am selfly across Europe show ed a pattern of larger body size at low and high latitudes, and sm aller body size at interm e- diate latitudes.
Jordan, S., C . Sim on, and D . Polhem us. 2003. M olecular systematics and adaptive radiation of H aw aii’s endemic damselfly genus M egalagrion (Odonata: C oenagrionidae). Systematic Biology 52:89-109.
M ueller, Z ., T. Jakab, A . Toth, G . D evai, N . Szallassy, B. K iss, and R . H orvath. 2003. Effect of sports fisherman activities on dragonfly as- semblages on a H ungarian river floodplain. Biodiversity and Conservation 12: 167-179. – D isruption of littoral zone by creation of clearings, tram - pling, and other alterations in vegetation by fisherm an decreased the abundance and diversity of dragonflies along a river.
Petrulevicius, J. F. and A . N el. 2003. Oldest petalurid dragonfly (Insecta: Odonata): a Low er C retaceous specimen from Patagonia, A r- gentina. Cretaceous Research 24: 31-34. – The first fossil petalurid dragonfly from A rgentina, Argentinopetala archangelskyi, is described.
Petrulevicius, J. F. and A . N el. 2003. A new libelluloid dragonfly (Insecta: Odonata: Italoansida) from the late Paleocene of A rgentina. G eobios 36: 401-406. – D escribes a new genus and species, Austrolibellula noroestenia, from northw estern A rgentina.
Purse, B. V ., G . W . H opkins, K . J. D ay, and D . J. Thom pson. 2003. D ispersal characteristics and management of a rare damselfly. Jrl. A p- plied Ecology 40: 716-728. – D iscussion of low dispersal rates and subsequent m anagem ent recom m enditions for the Southern D am selfly, Coe- nagrion mercuriale, in Britain and m ainland Europe.
Sam w ays, M . J. 2003. T hreats to the tropical island dragonfly fauna (Odonata) of M ayotte, C omoro archipelago. Biodiversity and Conserva- tion 12: 1785-1792. – D iscusses the hum an treats to the dragonfly diversity of this island, in particular the heavy use of detergents in stream s.
Schindler, M ., C . Fesi, and A . C hovanec. 2003. D ragonfly associations (Insecta: Odonata) in relation to habitat variables: multivariate approach. H ydrobiologia 497:169-180. – Statistical exam ination of relationship betw een dragonfly assem blages and environm ental variables in A ustria.
Sirot, L. K ., H . J. Brockm ann, C . M arinis, and G . M uschett. 2003. M aintenance of a female-limited polymorphism in Ischnura ramburi (Z ygoptera: C oenagrionidae). Animal Behaviour 66: 763-775. – D iscussion of the function of color m orphs in fem ale R am bur’s Forktails.
Sukhacheva, G . A ., N . A . K ryukova, and V . V . G lupov. 2003. On the roles of morphological and biochemical criteria in species identifica- tion: an example of dragonfly larvae of the genus A eshna. Biol. Bull. Russian Acad. Sci. 30: 63-68. – D escribes the difficulty in using structural characteristics and the helpfulness of using species-specific proteins to identify early-instar larvae.
A publication of the M ichigan O donata Survey
M ichigan O donata Survey c/o M useum of Z oology -- Insect D ivision U niversity of M ichigan Phone: 734-647-2199 Fax: 734-763-4080
Editor: Julie C raves R ouge R iver Bird O bservatory U niversity of M ichigan-D earborn D earborn, M I 48128 jcraves@ um d.um ich.edu
R egents of the U niversity: D avid A . Brandon Laurence B. D eitch D aniel D . H orning O livia P. M aynard R ebecca M cG ow an A ndrea Fischer N ew m an S. M artin Taylor K atherine E. W hite
President of the U niversity: M ary Sue C olem an
M useum of Z oology: D avid M indell, D irector
Odonata resources on the Internet
Tw o excellent odonata bibliographies are available on the Internet.
W eb sites of regional interest:
Ohio Odonata Society
Ontario Odonata
Our very own Michigan Odonata Survey
Also worth a look:
Ode News
Digital Dragonflies