''Anax parthenope'', the lesser emperor, is a

dragonfly A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of true dragonfly are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threate ...

of the family

Aeshnidae The Aeshnidae, also called aeshnids, hawkers, or darners, is a family of dragonflies. The family includes the largest dragonflies found in North America and Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its o ...

. It is found in

Southern Europe Southern Europe is the southern regions of Europe, region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countrie ...

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

and Asia.

Description

It is a crepuscular dragonfly, active in the dusk. This species can be easily distinguished by the multicolored upper surface of frons and by the shape and relative lengths of the anal appendages. Its labium and labrum are golden-yellow and face and frons are greenish yellow and eyes are green, bluish when aged. Its thorax is pale olivaceous brown with dark brown sutures. Its segment two of the abdomen is turquoise blue. Segment three has a large blue patch at each side. Segments 4 to 9 have an irregular black middorsal stripe. Segment 10 is black.

Comparison with ''Anax imperator''

''A. parthenope'' is smaller and less colourful than ''

Anax imperator The emperor dragonfly or blue emperor (''Anax imperator'') is a large species of hawker dragonfly of the family Aeshnidae, averaging in length. The generic name ''Anax'' is from the ancient Greek , "lord"; the specific epithet ''imperator'' is t ...

''. In general appearance, especially when seen on the wing, ''A. parthenope'' is similar to ''A. imperator'', but ''A. parthenope'' tends to hold its abdomen straighter than ''A. imperator''. A large dragonfly seen in flight with a bent abdomen is most likely to be ''A. imperator'' rather than ''A. parthenope''. ''A. parthenope'' has a blue saddle at S2 and S3 which can be seen in flight, which is in contrast to the rest of the abdomen, which is brown. A yellow ring is at the base of S2. The eyes are green. It is similar to '' A. ephippiger'', although ''A. ephippiger'' is slightly smaller and slenderer and its blue saddle does not wrap around S2, but is mostly blue on top. ''A. ephippiger'' has brown eyes.

Distribution and habitat

This species occurs in much of southern and central Europe, including most Mediterranean islands, across Asia to

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, the

Korean Peninsula Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, and on to North Africa. It has been found on the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

and the

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

Archipelago. It is spreading north and was first seen in Great Britain in 1996, where it has since bred.

Behaviour

In the south of its range ''A. parthenope'' can be on the wing in March. It is most commonly seen from June to September, but can still be around in November. Often seen patrolling around ponds, lakes, and other still water, it occurs with ''A. imperator'', but it is usually less abundant. When ''A. parthenope'' and ''A. imperator'' occur at the same ponds, ''A. imperator'' is dominant. Males and females mate in the normal dragonfly manner and after mating, the pair stay in tandem and egg-laying usually occurs whilst still in tandem. This behaviour not seen in other European hawkers with the exception of ''

Aeshna affinis ''Aeshna affinis'', the southern migrant hawker or blue-eyed hawker, is a dragonfly found in southern Europe and Asia. It is in the family Aeshnidae and is very similar in appearance to '' A. mixta''. Identification ''Aeshna affinis'' is a smal ...

'', although two migrants to Europe, ''A. ephippiger'' and ''A. junius'' also oviposit in tandem. Eggs are inserted into plants or in mud and hatch out in two months. Larval development takes two years.

References

External links