Dragon- and damselflies pretty much used to be non-existent in my area when I was a kid but throughout the last years they have become common considerably fast. While the number of species currently resides at nine, there is potential for more to settle down in the future.
The following table covers all species by year. (last updated: 25 July, 2024)
+-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+ | FAMILY | SPECIES | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | +-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+ +-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+ | Aeshnidae | Aeshna cyanea | | x | x | +-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+ | Calopterygidae | Calopteryx splendens | x | x | x | | | Calopteryx virgo | | | x | +-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+ | Coenagrionidae | Coenagrion mercuriale | x | x | x | | | Enallagma cyathigerum | | x | | | | Ischnura elegans | | | x | | | Pyrrhosoma nymphula | x | x | x | +-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+ | Libellulidae | Sympetrum vulgatum | x | x | | | | Sympetrum sanguineum | | x | x | +-----------------+-------------------------+------+------+------+
The following table covers all species by location. Please keep in mind that this covers all species ever observed at each respecting location and thus does not highlight species that have migrated to other spots or may have disappeared over time.
Additionally, this list includes two locations not part of the location index due to being located directly in my village, which is primarily used to assist my butterfly observations. Some species such as C. mercuriale were observed to drastically expand their territories and show up at locations far away from streams and ponds during droughts and mating seasons, as well. (last updated: 12 August, 2024)
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| LOCATION | SPECIES | COUNT |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| Yard | Coenagrion mercuriale, Ischnura elegans | 2 |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------|
| Zone I | Aeshna cyanea, Enallagma cyathigerum, Coenagrion | |
| ("Cherry | mercuriale, Sympetrum vulgatum | 4 |
| Hill") | | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| Zone II | Aeshna cyanea, Calopteryx virgo, Calopteryx | |
| ("David's | splendens, Coenagrion mercuriale, Pyrrhosoma | 6 |
| Fields") | nymphula, Sympetrum vulgatum | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| Zone III | Calopteryx splendens, Coenagrion mercuriale, | |
| ("Odrich's | Ischnura elegans, Sympetrum vulgatum, Sympetrum | 6 |
| Pond") | sanguineum, Pyrrhosoma nymphula | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| "Bog Hill" | Coenagrion + | |
| (FFH | | 1 |
| Territory) | | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| Meisel | Aeshna cyanea, Sympetrum sanguineum, Sympetrum | 4 |
| | vulgatum | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| ! Main ! | Calopteryx splendens, Coenagrion mercuriale | |
| ! Street ! | | 2 |
| ! Bridge ! | | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
| ! Community ! | Coenagrion mercuriale | 1 |
| ! Center ! | | |
|---------------|-----------------------------------------------------|-------|
| ! Village ! | Calopteryx splendens, Coenagrion mercuriale | 2 |
| ! Street ! | | |
| ! Bridge ! | | |
+---------------+-----------------------------------------------------+-------+
The bridge at the main street and the community center are just a few meters apart from each other and, while sparse in any other aspect, managed to attract one damselfly and one dragonfly species each. Next to the bridge is a Salix sp. that fell over in April, 2023 and was never fully removed. It lives on with just roughly 1/4 of its root still being intact, hence providing an ideal spot for C. spendens.
The community center offers a solid amount of different trees right next to the same stream below the bridge at the main street. While C. mercuriale largely avoids most of the area, there is a small garden south of it that continiously attracts this species.
The village street bridge is located between the zone that is making up "Yard" and the front yard meadow. Underneath the bridge follows the same stream crossing Zone III and Zone II – an already-recorded hotshot of both damselflies Despite low diversity in terms of flora, the streat is slow enough for damselflies to settle down.
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+ This individual passed me so quickly that I was only able to tell that it was small and noticeably blue.
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