engleski

Dragonfly composition (Insecta, Odonata) in wetland area of Turopolje region, Croatia

Wetland habitats are the most threatened ecosystems due to water-drainage, excessive exploitation and pollution, which is why they are increasingly disappearing all around Europe. To maintain the high species richness, it is essential to maintain a variety of biotopes. Therefore, wetland area of Turopolje is an important habitat for biodiversity conservation in Croatia. In biodiversity conservation dragonflies serve as umbrella species representing specific biotic wetland assemblages. They are used as bio-indicators for freshwater ecosystems’ quality due to their sensitivity and complex food web. Literature data of the dragonfly findings on Croatian territory are relatively poorly represented. Also, dragonfly fauna in Turopolje area is very poorly researched. The primary objectives of this research were to determine dragonfly fauna and their distribution in Turopolje region. The survey was conducted from August 2007 until May 2009 at 9 localities. All investigated localities differ in their vegetation structure and amount of present water. Vegetation alliance for each locality was determined at a sight. For estimation of dragonfly composition per locality, Shannon-Weaver and Simpson index of diversity were used. 22 species with 307 specimens of dragonflies were determined, most of them belonging to the Libellulidae family. Only 1 species was recorded for families Lestide, Platycnemididae and Corduliidae. Species Calopteryx splendens (Harris, 1782), Coenagrion puella (Linnaeus, 1758) and Ischnura elegans (Vander Linden, 1820) were the most abundant species. On the other hand, species Pyrrhosoma nymphula (Sulzer, 1776), Lestes barbarus (Fabricius, 1798), Brachytron pratense (Müller, 1764), Epitheca bimaculata (Charpentier, 1825), Gomphus vulgatissimus (Linnaeus, 1758), Orthetrum cancellatum (Linnaeus, 1758) and Orthetrum coerulescens (Fabricius, 1798) were recorded only for 1 locality. Also, endangered and protected species Erythromma najas (Hansemann, 1823), Lestes barbarus (Zygoptera), Aeshna isoceles (Müller, 1767), Epitheca bimaculata and Otrhetrum coerulescens (Anisoptera) were recorded. Shannon-Weaver and Simpson index of diversity showed that vegetation structure is one of the main factors that affect the composition of the dragonfly communities. Future investigations should include the entire Turopolje region as well as dragonfly larvae and sheds sampling.

dragonflies / Turopolje / fauna / distribution / habitat characteristics

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