The world's top 10 rare dragonflies, the top ten rare dragonfly species

There is a saying in Du Fu's poem about Qujiang of Tang Dynasty: "You can see the butterfly deeply through the flowers, and the dragonfly can fly in the water." Dragonfly is one of the animals with a long history on the earth, and is known as the "Proud of the Sky". They have slender bodies, brilliant colors, elegant postures, and flexible and agile flying abilities, making them one of people's favorite ornamental insects. Today I will introduce to you the ten rarest dragonflies in the world, let’s enjoy them together.

1. Broad-striped northern arrowfly (national second-level protected animal)

The broad-striped northern arrowfly (scientific name: Ophiogomphus spinicornis), also known as the spiny-horned snake-striped springfly, is one of the most precious dragonfly species in China. Adult individuals are good at flying. They not only have the endurance to fly long distances, but also display superb flying skills. They feed on small insects and are excellent hunters of mosquitoes and other insects.

The broad-striped northern arrowfly is mainly distributed in China, Mongolia and Russia. In China, they are distributed in Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Gansu, Qinghai and Beijing. This dragonfly is listed as a national second-level protected animal in China and is also included in the "International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List" (IUCN).

2. Jianbanxi Arrowfly (national second-level protected animal)

Among the rare species of dragonflies in China, only two are listed as nationally protected animals. They are the broad-striped northern arrowfly and the sharp-striped arrowfly. Heliogomphus retroflexus (scientific name: Heliogomphus retroflexus) is a rare species. Its body is mainly black and its wings are transparent with some brown spots, showing a powerful and powerful feeling. However, unlike the extremely adaptable ability of ordinary dragonflies, the distribution of the arrowfly is limited to the Fujian region of China, and a small amount is also distributed in Vietnam.

Due to the sharp decline in the number of the Jianbanxi arrowfly, in order to protect its survival and reproduction, this species has been included in China's national second-level protected animal list.

3. Low-spotted dragonfly (extremely endangered according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species)

Libellula angelina (scientific name: Libellula angelina) is one of the TOP10 rare dragonfly species. It belongs to the genus Odonata of the family Odonata. It emerges as an adult from April to May every year and lives as a nymph in the water at other times. The low-spotted dragonfly is mainly distributed in countries such as China, North Korea, South Korea and Japan.

The low-spotted dragonfly is listed as critically endangered in the Red Species List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This level is higher than the endangered level of the giant panda, and is the same as the endangered Chinese sturgeon and Baiji dolphin, China's national first-level protected animals. The level is the same. The International Union for Conservation of Nature also pointed out in its assessment of the low-spot dragon level that the global population of this species is declining year by year.

4. Dry Swamp Silk Dragonfly (endangered species)

Mortonagrion hirosei (scientific name: Mortonagrion hirosei) is one of the top ten species of rare dragonflies. It mainly inhabits muddy humus-rich wetlands, swamps and rivers in coastal areas. This species was first discovered in a dry marsh in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan in 1971, and then officially received the scientific name ヒヌマイトトンボ (dry marsh silk dragonfly) in 1972. In addition to Japan and Hong Kong, some people believe that it also inhabits mainland China.

The dry swamp silk dragonfly is distributed from Tohoku to Kyushu in Japan. However, due to river reconstruction and other reasons, their habitat is decreasing. Therefore, the dry swamp silk dragonfly is listed as an endangered species, and its survival situation has attracted attention.

5. Big blue dragonfly (low risk according to the "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species"

The big blue dragonfly (scientific name: Libellula vibrans) is also a precious dragonfly species. It is mainly distributed in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere, such as the United States, Mexico and other countries. It likes to live in ponds, rivers and other places with water sources. The big blue dragonfly is medium-sized and has a stunning blue appearance. Its larvae mostly crawl in still water in search of food.

The big blue dragonfly has a special spoon-shaped lower lip covered with lateral setae and mental setae, which are its sharp tools for obtaining food. This species is also included in the International Red Data Book of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and is rated as low risk (LC) according to the 2009 Insecta Odonata version (ver 3.1).

6. Scarlet dragonfly (low risk according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species)

The scarlet dragonfly (scientific name: Crocothemis servilia), as one of the ten rare dragonflies, is famous for its bright colors. The male dragonfly's compound eyes are red, and its chest and abdomen are also bright red, hence its name. They usually inhabit relatively moist areas, such as places with many dams or ditches. This species was included in the 2012 Red List of Endangered Species ver 3.1 of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and was rated as low risk (LC).

The key medium for scarlet dragonflies to reproduce is water, and their eggs need to be laid in water. The eggs will hatch in the water, grow, and eventually become mature scarlet dragonflies. In addition, scarlet dragonflies also hunt on the water surface because there are a large number of insects for them to eat.

7. Daori Springfly (distributed inQueshan, Henan, China)

Nihonogomphus cultratus (scientific name: Nihonogomphus cultratus) is also one of the rarest dragonfly species. The larvae of this species inhabit the sand, muddy water or water plants in the water. Only a few larvae live in the debris of the forest or in water-filled tree holes, or in the water film attached to the rocks. Spring flies are usually active during the day, close to the living environment of larvae, and fly in rivers, ponds, streams and other places.

Female springflies prefer to stay away from water sources, such as near forests, where food is easier to obtain. This variety is only distributed in the Henan (Queshan) region of China.

8. Deep Mountain Fujian Springfly (distributed in Fujian/Hainan/Zhejiang/Guangdong/Taiwan, China)

The abdominal length of males and females of the rare dragonfly species Fukienogomphus prometheus (scientific name: Fukienogomphus prometheus) is about 42 to 46 mm, and the length of the hind wings is about 36 to 41 mm. They are generally active during the day and often fly near the environment where larvae live, such as rivers, ponds, streams and other places. The main food of Fujian spring flies in deep mountains includes mayfly larvae, mosquito larvae and other similar individuals, even tadpoles and small fish. They are one of the important natural enemy insects of humans and are also good indicator insects for water quality environment.

The distribution range of the deep mountain Fujian springfly is mainly limited to Fujian (Wuyishan, Shaowu, Jianyang, Xianyou, Yongan, Changting), Taiwan and Guangdong in China.

9. Black butterfly (distributed in Hebei/Shandong/Jiangsu/Shaanxi/Sichuan/Hunan/Zhejiang and other places in China )

Rhyothemis fuliginosa Selys (scientific name: Rhyothemis fuliginosa Selys) is the most beautiful of the rare dragonfly species. It is different from most dragonflies in that it has a unique wing appearance. Although the wings of most dragonflies are transparent, only a small part of the front end of the forewing of the black dragonfly is transparent, revealing the wing mole, while the rest is a metallic color mixed with blue, green and black, giving a very textured look. Feel. Their spread metallic blue-black wings appear colorful when illuminated by the sun, which is extremely beautiful.

Compared to other dragonflies, the black dragonfly always flies at a leisurely pace. Because their front and rear wings are wider, their wings flap less frequently, and they fly more like butterflies, with graceful and charming postures. Therefore, people praise it as the "butterfly dragonfly". The black dragonfly is mainly distributed in Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhejiang, Guangdong and Liaoning. As an ancient dinosaur-like species, their numbers are quite limited.

10. Butterfly cleft lipfly (distributed in China and Vietnam)

Chlorogomphus papilio (scientific name: Chlorogomphus papilio) is a very famous and rare dragonfly species. They are the largest dragonflies in China, with a beautiful and huge body, with a wingspan of up to 14-15 cm. The breed's head is oval-shaped from the front, with the two eyes touching each other to form a straight line when viewed from behind.

The butterfly lipfly likes to inhabit mountainous areas with an altitude of 500 to 1500 meters, especially clear mountain stream environments in lush forests. Their distribution range is limited to Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang and Vietnam in China.

The top ten rarest dragonflies in the world are mainly recommended based on the rarity/popularity of dragonflies and comprehensive reference to relevant Internet rankings/lists. The data is as of October 27, 2023. If you have any questions, please feel free to comment/criticize at the end.

animal tags： Dragonfly