The first evidence of breeding by Crocothemis sanguinolenta and Zygonyx torridus (Odonata: Libellulidae) in Iran

Kiany, Mohsen; Sadeghi, Saber; Ebrahimi, Mehregan

doi:10.61186/jibs.10.1.161

The first evidence of breeding by Crocothemis sanguinolenta and Zygonyx torridus (Odonata: Libellulidae) in Iran

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

Mohsen Kiany ¹

Saber Sadeghi ¹

Mehregan Ebrahimi ²

¹ Biology Department, Faculty of Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

² Biology Department, Faculty of Sciences, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran [1]; University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany [2]

10.61186/jibs.10.1.161

Abstract

For the first time, exuviae of Crocothemis sanguinolenta and Zygonyx torridus were collected from southern parts of Iran. Females of Z. torridus were also observed mating and ovipositing in two habitats. According to our data, these two species successfully breed in some suitable microhabitats and are neither immigrants nor vagrants. Our findings based on this research and recent information showed that habitat dispersal for these two species is not limited to the Hormuz Strait region, as previously thought. Suitable habitats for Z. torridus expanded from the Southwest to the East of the country. For C. sanguinolenta, the habitat range covers the far southeastern parts of the country near the Pakistan border area. Based on the geological history of the Persian Gulf region in the last glacial period and similar African coexisting species in these microhabitats, we suggest that these species are relict populations that survived in a few suitable habitats from a wider area in the past. This view seems more appropriate to explain the current distribution of these species than their recent migration from the UAE or Oman regions

Graphical Abstract

The first evidence of breeding by Crocothemis sanguinolenta and Zygonyx torridus (Odonata: Libellulidae) in Iran

Keywords

Autochthonous

distribution

Dragonfly

relict

Anisoptera

exuviae

Subjects

Biodiversity

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