Libélulas (Odonata: Insecta) de un embalse de riego en El Puerto de la Harina, Villena, Alicante

Adrian David Trapero Quintana; Teodoro Martínez; Ricardo Menor; Maria José Tarruella Rodenas

doi:10.14198/cdbio.30679

Authors

Adrian David Trapero Quintana Asociación Española de Entomología, Spain https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2488-7825
Teodoro Martínez Universidad de Alicante, Spain https://orcid.org/0009-0008-3968-2316
Ricardo Menor Universidad de Alicante, Spain https://orcid.org/0009-0003-1816-5575
Maria José Tarruella Rodenas Universidad de Alicante, Spain https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7354-5279

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14198/cdbio.30679

Keywords:

Relative abundance, diversity, Anisoptera, exuviae, Zygoptera

Abstract

Dragonflies are characteristic insects of aquatic environments and, as biological indicators of these habitats, constitute excellent models for their assessment. They act as fast colonizers of these environments, where they reproduce and develop their larval stages. In the present study, the composition and abundance of dragonflies were characterized in an irrigation reservoir located in the rural area of El Puerto de la Harina in Villena, Alicante, based on historical records of adults and exuviae collections, conducted weekly from March to August 2024 and 2025. A relative abundance rank curve was constructed, and the temporal frequency percentage during the sampling periods was estimated. Nine species belonging to three families and seven genera were detected. Trithemis kirbyi was the dominant species, followed by T. annulata, Enallagma cyathigerum, and Orthetrum cancellatum, with Libellulidae being the most diverse family. The odonate assemblage exhibited a relatively uneven distribution of relative abundance, characterized by dominant species with significant high and medium constancy percentages. It is evident that the diversity, abundance, and constancy of odonates are related to the structural characteristics and biotic factors of the studied freshwater environment. Strategies such as short larval cycles and occupation of key microhabitats in the water bodies are the key explaining the abundance of dominant species. Irrigation reservoirs play an important role in the maintenance and diversification of odonatocenoses in the Iberian Peninsula, and monitoring these reservoirs, dispersed across the Spanish geography, would yield novel information about the order and freshwater entomofauna in general.

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