| Index of Dragonflies Sabah | Index Dragonflies in Malaysia | Exoskeleton | LINKS | Simplified Chinese Version | Traditional Chinese Version | English Version |
|
|
|
The compound eyes of dragonfly More on comparing the size, color, and shape of the eyes of dragonflies... |
||||
| A | B | C | D | E |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Eyes separated widely from other | Eyes meet partially along a seam | Eyes barely touch at a center point | Eyes meet along a long seam | Eyes close but not quite touching |
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Orthetrum testaceum | Gynacantha basiguttata (Selys, 1882) | Neurothemis terminata |
| 赭黃蜻蜓 | 綠眼晏蜓 | 紅蜻蜓 |
 |
 |
| Matured male Orthetrum testaceum | Male Orthetrum testaceum |
| Body parts of a male dragonfly | Head parts of a dragonfly |
 |
|
 |
Gynacantha basiguttata (Selys, 1882) 綠眼晏蜓This green dragonfly visit houses in the country side at night... |
|
Genus :
Neurothemis A visual comparison of the 3 most confused Red dragonflies in Sabah |
||
| 紅蜻蜓 | 紅脈蜻蛉 | 善變蜻蜓 |
| Neurothemis terminata terminata (Ris, 1911 ) |
Neurothemis fluctuans (Fabricius, 1793) |
Neurothemis ramburii ramburii (Kaup in Brauer, 1866) |
| Male : Bright Red | Male : Dark Red | Male : Bright Red |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Bigger ( hw, 28-32 mm) |
Smaller (hw, 21-25 mm) |
Bigger ( hw, 28-32 mm) |
| Neurothemis terminata terminata (Ris, 1911 ) |
Neurothemis fluctuans (Fabricius, 1793) |
Neurothemis ramburii ramburii (Kaup in Brauer, 1866) |
| Neurothemis terminata copulat for about 30 seconds. A time too short for most photographers to snap a photo. |
 |
 |
| hind wing 28-31 mm | Male hind wing 22-24mm Female hind wing 22-25mm |
hind wing 28-30 mm |
 |
 |
 |
| Above : Female Below : Female's Right Wing |
Above : Female
Neurothemis fluctuans Below : Female's Right Wing |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Exuvia - Larval Exoskeleton of Dragonflies (empty cases of dragonfly nymphs) |
 |
Dragonflies and Damselflies living in Denmark. by Erland Refling Nielsen http://home1.stofanet.dk/erland_refling/danish_dragonflies.htm
|
 |
香港自然生態 : http://www.hknature.net
|
生態照片 : 蜻蜓之美
|
 |
 |
|
|
沙巴气候宜人，蓝天白云，常年温度28至33摄氏度之间。其地理环境得天独厚，有绵延的海岸线，极为特殊的珊瑚等海洋生物；有世界上第二大的原始热带雨林，诸多的红树林，还有世界罕见的珍禽昆虫，奇花异草，名贵药材……沙巴，不仅是旅游胜地，还是自然爱好者、植物学家、鸟禽观察家、潜水者、登山爱好者的天堂，更是喜爱亲近大自然人士的好去处. Fast key to dragonfly species http://www.bio.georgiasouthern.edu 私の昆虫アルバム－トンボ編 : http://www5e.biglobe.ne.jp |
| Dragonflies attract much
attention of naturalists for their vibrant color. The showy striking color
of their body amazes many onlookers.
Odonates (dragonflies and damselflies) are insects which contains three Suborders: 1) Anisoptera (dragonflies), 2) Zygoptera (damselflies), 3) Anisozygoptera. The two former suborders of dragonflies and damselflies are widespread whereas Anisozygoptera is represented by one single species in Japan and one in the Himalayas. There are more than 5000 odonate species worldwide. In Malaysia more than 300 species have been found. Dragonflies are helping us in keeping down the numbers of mosquitoes and we tend to forget that mosquitoes form a large part of the diet of many predators including dragonflies and birds. Photography on dragonflies is now getting popular among the nature lovers. Morning is the best time for a beginner in photography dragonflies. Most dragonflies require that their flight muscles reach a certain minimum temperature before they are able to fly efficiently. Often insects are sluggish in the morning as they wait for the temperatures to rise enough to get their flight muscles warm. In a cool morning the dragonflies are much more approachable. And the dew condensed on the dragonflies wings often makes for a nice photo. In cool, dewcy mornings, one may find dragonflies covered with dew. They usually hide in a more sheltered spot, among weeds or cattails. They won't be going anywhere until morning sun fully warm them up. Dragonflies have favorite perches location. One can get as close as physically possible to the perching site and set up the camera. For macro close up work, a small F-stop is usually required (F16 or so). The dragonfly will leave during the setup, but will normally return within minutes landing on the same stem tip in the same physical position. Some dragonflies hunt into the late afternoon aided by their excellent eye-sight. They perch on twigs, grass blades, or leaves at the water’s edge, waiting to grab small insects that come within range. A dragonfly usually perches with its body in a horizontal position. They take an upright posture as if doing a handstand. It had assumed this “obelisk posture” to cool itself by minimising the rays of the sun ray to the body. Dragonflies are usually found near ponds, lakes, rivers, or even puddles of water that are quite permanent. When they are not flying, you can find them perching on leaves or twigs at the water’s edge. Dragonfly are magnificent flying machines. It can fly at speeds of nearly 100kph. It can hover like a helicopter, fly vertically, stop or turn sharpy in the midst of rapid flight, even fly backwards. It has the best eyesight among insects. |
蜻蜓索引 / 自然風情
A Survey on dragonflies of Sabah (Dragonflies of North Borneo)
A state rich in Odonata in malaysia
 |
老虎斑蜻蜓 Tetrathemis irregularis hyalina (Kirby, 1889) Among the smallest dragonflies in Sabah with body length only 28mm |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gynacantha basiguttata (Selys, 1882) 綠眼晏蜓One of the largest species in Sabah (and in Borneo) |
 |
海神蜻蜓 Lathrecista asiatica asiatica (Fabricius, 1798) |
|
|
 |
春 蜓 Ictinogomphus decoratus melaenops (Selys, 1858) |
  |
 |
雲斑蜻/夜遊蜻蜓 Tholymis tillarga (Fabricius, 1798) |
  |
杜松蜻蜓 Orthetrum sabina sabina (Drury, 1770) |
 |
线纹蜻蜓 Cratilla lineata lineata (Brauer, 1878) |
  |
善變蜻蜓 Neurothemis ramburii ramburii (Kaup in Brauer, 1866) |
|
|
紅蜻蜓 Neurothemis terminata terminata Ris, 1911 |
 |
|
 |
金黃蜻蜓 Orthetrum glaucum (Brauer, 1865) |
  |
蓝额疏脉蜻/橙斑蜻蜓 Brachydiplax chalybea chalybea (Brauer, 1868) |
  |
庆褐蜻
(樂仙蜻蜓)
|
 |
橙黃蜻蜓 |
  |
曉褐蜻/紫紅蜻蜓 Trithemis aurora |
 |
黄蜻 (薄翅蜻蜓)Pantala flavescens (Fabricius, 1798)
|
|
 |
 |
侏儒蜻蜓 Diplacodes trivialis (Rambur,1842) |
 |
Neurothemis Unidentified | Yellow Brown Young Male |
 |
锥腹蜻 (粗腰蜻蜓) |
Acisoma panorpoides panorpoides (Rambur, 1842) |
 |
Rhyothemis phyllis phyllis (Sulzer, 1776) |
|
 |
Rhyothemis triangularis (Kirby, 1889) |
|
 |
Crocothemis servilia |
|
|
|
|
Biography of Philip Powell Calvert (H.B. White) Pacific Northwest Dragonfly Migration Project (S. Valley) Toxicity tests on Stylurus amnicola (Great Lakes Fisheries Commission) |
蜻 蜓
List of common dragonflies in Sabah, Malaysia
蜻 蜓
|
蜻蜓的交配也是在飛行中進行的。雄蜻蜓用腹部末端的把握器抓緊雌蜻蜓的頸部；雌蜻蜓腹部由下向前彎，把生殖孔接到雄蜻蜓腹部第二節下面的貯存精子器官，然後雄蜻蜓才進行授精。產卵時，大多是邊飛邊用尾部碰水面，把卵排出。我們常見的所謂「蜻蜓點水」，就是雌蜻蜓產卵的表演動作。蜻蜓還有「領域佔據」的習性，雄性的蜻蜓為了覓食及搶得與雌蜻蜓交尾配對的機會，常會發生爭奪地盤而互相追逐的場面。 |
 |
|
|
蜻蜓的頭與胸部連結的部分較窄，使頭部能夠上下左右轉動，且有一對大複眼，視覺非常敏銳，能夠在空中追擊或攔截一些動作慢的飛翔昆蟲，所以是空中的惡棍。 捕捉的昆蟲包括蜜蜂、蛾類，甚至較小的蜻蜓。
|
Feats and Facts |
Fossils of prehistoric dragonflies have been found with wingspans of 30 inches and body lengths up to 18 inches. |
Adults of Odonata can fly backwards or forwards and even hover like a helicopter. They can do these incredible aerial tricks because their two pairs of wings move independently of each other, in contrast to most other insects. |
The fastest recorded insect flight belongs to the Australian dragonfly, Austrophlbia costalis, which can reach 36 miles per hour over short distances. |
Some dragonflies can have between 10,000 and 50,000 individual eyes (commatidia) in each compound eye. |
The naiad shoots out its labium very fast to catch a prey, and the forward movement requires less than three one-hundredths of a second. |
The common green darner found in the United States, Anax junuios, migrates north into Canada each summer. In the fall, the offspring of these dragonflies will make their way back to the south. |
The largest damselfly, Megaloprepus coerulatus, has a wing spread of more than seven inches. This damselfly is found in Central and South America. |
A dragonfly nymph can use jet propulsion to move forward very quickly. By pulling water into the rectal chamber of its abdomen and then shooting it out. |
The word for dragonfly in Japanese is "tombo", but many years ago dragonflies were called "akitsu." Japan was once called Akitsushima, meaning "The Island of the Dragon-fly." |
|
Odonates are insects with two large compound eyes, two pairs of delicate and membranous wings, and a long slender abdomen. Their life history occurs in two different stages: aquatic and aerial stages. The larval stage is spent in aquatic environment, and the adulthood is in terrestrial. Both the larvae and adults are good hunters. Prey may be stalked or ambushed. Dragonflies receive less attention due to their less economical significance compared to other insects such as butterflies. Yet, they are good indicator for aquatic ecosystem, and the larvae (nymphs) are proven to be good biocontrol of insect pests. |
|
Adult dragonflies and damselflies catch and eat insects while flying. They eat anything small enough for them to handle, including flies, wasps, moths, and beetles. Adults often fly away from their nymphal home in the water to another area where they feed for several weeks before returning to the pond, lake, or stream to mate and lay eggs. Mating of dragonflies and damselflies is peculiar in that the mate holds the female behind the head while the female receives the male reproductive cells. Mating pairs will stay clasped for several minutes to several hours depand on species. They even fly while joined together. Dragonflies and damselflies undergo incomplete metamorphosis (egg-nymph-adult). The eggs are laid in water or in water plants and hatch into an aquatic nymph (naiad). The naiad stage lasts for a few weeks to almost five years. The nymphs must shed their skin, or molt, in order to grow in size, and they can molt 10 to 15 times before becoming mature. The mature nymph crawls out of the water onto the stem of an aquatic plant, where the adult emerges from the skin of the nymph, dries, and expands its wings, and flys away in search of food. Dragonflies are different from damselflies Dragonflies hold their wings out from the body when at rest. Damselflies rest with their wings held together over their backs. Dragonflies and damselflies wings are transperant with many veins. Most species in Sabah have beautiful color patterns. The coloration of the male dragonfly often differs from that of the female. Their mouthparts include large mandibles for biting and chewing. They have small hairlike antennae. There are 5,000 species of dragonflies and damselflies. About 500 to 1500 species are to be described and named in the world.
|
 |
|
文献参考
 A Guide to the Dragonflies of Borneo: Their Identification and Biology By: Orr A G The first guide to the dragonflies of Borneo Island. The most comprehensive coverage for any tropical region. 275 species (60%) occurring on the island are described and illustrated in photographs and 25 beautiful plates of 1/2-wing drawings. Chapters on biology, classification and ecology, as well as a complete checklist. 19.5 x 26.5 cm. Many more yet to be discovered, Borneo has one of the richest and most exciting dragonfly faunas in the world. More than 40% species found nowhere else, making Borneo the most distinctive sub-region of Sundaland. It is home to such spectacular species as Tetracanthagyna plagiata, the heaviest of all dragonflies, many beautiful picture-winged chlorocyphids and euphaeids, and high-altitude endemics such as Matronoides cyaneipennis restricted to Mount Kinabalu and nearby mountains.
The
text augments the illustrations and provides useful information on
biology.
Introductory chapters discuss structure and general biology, ecology and
conservation, faunistics and biogeography and collecting techniques and
photography. There is a complete and up to date checklist. Illustrated
keys to families of adults give the reader an understanding of the
structures used in classifying dragonflies and augment the usefulness of
the illustrations of entire insects. Main larval forms are shown. This
book will be useful not just in Borneo, but also in neighboring parts of
south-east Asia. |
 A
Pocket Guide to Dragonflies of Peninsular Malaysia
AG Orr
127 pages, colour illus, map.
Dragonflies are among the most beautiful of insects. Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore are home to more than 230 species (twice the number found in Europe). They include some of the most exquisite forms found anywhere in the World. They occur wherever there is suitable fresh water habitat. Many species frequent the borders of garden ponds in our largest cities, perching on lily pads with glowing red bodies in striking contrast to their green platform. Others haunt swift clear streams in virgin rainforest, while yet others are confined to blackwater swamps. A few occur deep in the forest understorey, far from streams or pools, where they breed in the water accumulated in cavities in tree trunks. This book figures 98.7% of species known from Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. For most, coloured drawings of the whole insect (omitting one pair of wings) are provided. Where necessary, coloured or monochrome drawings showing diagnostic features are also included. For some species, especially small Zygoptera (damselflies), only detailed structures are figured, as the general resemblance between close species is strong. A wide range of larval types is also figured. |
| Asahina S | A list of Odonata from Thailand (Part I-XXI) | Bosco Offset,599/182 Thailand,Bangkok:Soi Yoo Dee,Yannawa |
| Hemline M Pinratana A | Atlas of the Dragonflies of Thailand Distribution Maps by Provinces | Thailand Bangkok:Brothers of St.Gabriel |
| Fraser F C | The Fauna of British India Including Ceylon and Burma. Odonata | London:Taylor and Francis |
| Bishop J E | Limnology of Small Malayan River Gombak | Netherlands The Hague:Dr.W.JunkPublication House |
| Chovanec A | Dragonfly (Insecta: Odonata) as indicators of the ecological integrity of aquatic systems- A new assessment approach | Verh.Internat.Verein.Limnologica |
| Chovanec A Raab R | Dragonflies (Insecta, Odonata) and the ecological status of newly created wetlands: Example for long-term bioindication programmes | Limnologica |
| Corbet P S | A Biology of Dragonflies | London:Witherby |
| Corbet P S | Dragonflies: Behaviour and Ecology of Odonata | United Kingdom:Harley,Colchester |
| Dudgeon D | The influence of riparian vegetation on the functional organization of four Hong Kong stream communities | Hydrobiologia |
| Kovacs M | Biological Indicators in Environmental Protection | England:Ellis Horwood Limited |
| Krebs C J | Ecological Methodology | University of British Columbia:Harper Collins Publishers |
| Ludwig J A Reynolds J F | Statictical Ecology: A Primer on Methods and Computing | New York:John Wiley and Sons Inc |
| Milen M | Dragonflies (Odonata: Insecta) in the Bulgarian Wetlands: Current status, distribution and their importance as Bio-indicator[A]. The Asian Wetlands: Bringing Partnerships into Good Wetland Practices 2001 | Malaysia:Penerbit USM |
| Moore N W | Intra- and interspecific competition among dragonflies (Odonata): An account of observations and field experiments on population density in Dorset 1954-1960 | Journal Animal Ecology |
| Okudaira M Sugimura M Ishida S | Dragonflies of the Japanese Archipelago in color | Hokkaido:Hokkaido University Press |
| Osborn R Samways M J | Determinants of adult dragonfly assemblage pattern at new ponds in South Africa. | Odonatologica |
| Pinel-Alloul B Methot G Lapierre L | Macroinvertebrate Community as a Biological Indicator of Ecological and Toxicological Factors in Lake Saint Francois (Quebec) | Environmental Pollution |
| Pinratana A Kiauta B Hamalainen M | List of the Odonata of Thailand and annotated bibliography. | Thailand,Bangkok:Brothers of St.Gabriel |
| Raab R Chovanec A Wiener A K | Aspects of Habitat Selection by Adult Dragonflies at a Newly Created Pond in Vienna, Austria | Odonatologica |
| Schmidt E | Habitat inventerization, characterization and bioindication by a "representative spectrum of Odonata species (RSO)" | Odonatologica |
| Steytler N S Samways M J | Biotope selection by adult male dragonflies (Odonata) at an artificial lake created for insect conservation in South Africa | Biological Conservation |
| Strahler A N | Quantitative analysis of watershed geomorphology | Transaction American Geophysic Union |
| Sugimura M Ishida S Kijima K | Dragonflies of the Japanese Archiphelago in Color. Japan | Hokkaido:Hokkaido University Press |
| Suh A N Samways M J | Development of a dragonfly awareness trail in an African botanical garden | Biological Conservation |
| Wahizatul A | Some aspect of ecology of running water odonates and their potentials as indicator of environmental quality | Malaysia:Unpublished M.Sc.Thesis.Universiti Sains Malaysia |
| Watson J A L Theishinger G Abbey H M | The Australian Dragonflies, A Guide to the Identification, Distributions and Hhabitats of Australian Odonata. | Australia,CSIRO:Canberra and Melbourne |
| Widermuth H Spinner W | Visual cues in oviposition site selection by Somatochlora artica(Zetterstedt) (Anisoptera;Corduliidae) | Odonatologica |
|
Odonata related sites in Britain and Ireland |
|
References Baker, R. L., and H. F. Clifford. 1982. Life cycle of an Enallagma boreale Selys population from the boreal forest of Alberta, Canada (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae). Odonatologica 11(4):317-322. Calvert, P. P. 1902, in Calvert, P. P. 1901-1908. Odonata. In Biologia Centrali Americana: Insecta Neuroptera. R. H. Porter & Dulau & Co.: London. Dec 1902, p. 114. Calvert, P. P. 1919. Gundlach's work on the Odonata of Cuba: a critical study. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 45:335-396. Cannings, R. A. 1989. Enallagma basidens Calvert, a dragonfly new to Canada, with notes on the expansion of its range in North America (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae). Notulae Odonatologicae 3(4):53-55. Charpentier, T. de. 1840. Libellulinae europaeae descriptae e depictae. Lipsiae, Leopold Voss. 180 pp. Donnelly, T. W. 1989. The status of Enallagma cyathigerum (Charp.) and E. vernale Gloyd in south-central New York (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae). Odonatologica 18:373-378. Gloyd, L. K. 1943. Enallagma vernale, a new species of Odonata from Michigan. Occasional Papers of the Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan 479:1-8. Hagen, H. A. 1861. Synopsis of the neuroptera of North America, with a list of the South American species. Smithsonia Miscellaneous Collections 4:1-347. Ingham, B. R., and C. E. Jenner. 1976. Life histories of Enallagma hageni (Walsh) and E. aspersum (Hagen) (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae). Odonatologica 5:331-345. Johannsson, O. E. 1978. Co-existence of larval Zygoptera (Odonata) common to the Norfolk Broads (U.K.). Oecologia 32:303-321. Kellicot, D. S. 1895. Catalogue of the Odonata of Ohio, Part 1. Journal of the Cincinnati Society of Natural History 17:195-216. Kormondy, E. J., and J. L. Gower. 1965. Life history variations in an association of Odonata. Ecology 46:882-886. Macan, T. T. 1964. The Odonata of a moorland fishpond. Int. Revue ges. Hydrobiol. 49:325-360. Morse, A. P. 1895. New North American Odonata. Psyche 7:207-211. O'Brien, M. F., and P. D. Pratt. 1999 (In press). Enallagma anna, a damselfly new to the Great Lakes region (Odonata: Coenagrionidae). The Great Lakes Entomologist 32(1). Pearlstone, P. S. M. 1973. The food of damselfly larvae in Marion Lake, British Columbia. Syesis 6:33-39. Say, T. 1839. Descriptions of new North American neuropterous insects and observations on some already described by (the late) Th. Say. Journal of the Academy of Natural Science of Philadelphia 8:9-46. Selys-Longchamps, E. de. 1875. Notes on Odonata from Newfoundland collected in 1874 by Mr. John Milne. Entomologists Monthly Magazine 11:241-243. Selys-Longchamps, E. de. 1876. Synopsis des agrionines, cinquième légion: Arion (suite). Le genre Agrion. Bulletin de l'Académie royale des Sciences de Belgique (2) 42:480-531. Walker, E. M. 1953. The Odonata of Canada and Alaska, Vol. 1. University of Toronto Press: Toronto, Ontario. xi + 292 pp. Walsh, B. D. 1862. List of the Pseudoneuroptera of Illinois contained in the cabinet of the writer, with descriptions of over forty new species, and notes on their structural affinities. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Philadelphia 1862:361-402. Walsh, B. D. 1863. Observations on certain N. A. neuroptera by Hagen, M. D., of Konigsberg, Prussia; translated from the original French MS., and published by permission of the author, with notes and descriptions of about twenty new N. A. species of Pseudoneuroptera. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Philadelphia 2:167-272. [note: see also Walsh, B. D. 1862 for original description of adults, which were named in Walsh 1863. Source: Westfall and May 1996 ). Westfall, M. J., Jr. and M. L. May. 1996. Damselflies of North America. Scientific Publishers: Gainesville, Florida. x + 650 pp. |
| Disclaimer: The Dragonflies of Sabah is an educational resource written largely by and for SMK (secondary school) students in Malaysia. TDS doesn't cover all species in Sabah, nor does it include all the latest scientific information. Though we edit our pages for accuracy, we cannot guarantee all information in these pages. While we provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable, we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control. |
|
INDEX : Dragonfly October 27, 2007 12:28:37 PM |
|
