Journal of Threatened Taxa |
www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 May 2023 | 15(5): 23257–23261
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893
(Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8406.15.5.23257-23261
#8406 | Received 12 February 2023 | Final
received 09 May 2023 | Finally accepted 14 May 2023
Odonate fauna (Insecta: Odonata) of Kashmir, Jammu
& Kashmir, India: a preliminary report
Nisar Ahmad Paray 1 &
Altaf Hussain Mir 2
1,2 Entomology Research
laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Kashmir, Srinagar- Jammu &
Kashmir 190006, India.
1 nisarparay143@gmail.com
(corresponding author), 2 draltaf_786@yahoo.com
Editor: Ashish D. Tiple, Dr.
R.G. Bhoyar ACS College, Seloo,
Wardha, Maharashtra, India. Date
of publication: 26 May 2023 (online & print)
Citation: Paray, N.A. & A.H. Mir (2023). Odonate
fauna (Insecta: Odonata) of Kashmir, Jammu &
Kashmir, India: a preliminary report. Journal of Threatened Taxa 15(5): 23257–23261. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8406.15.5.23257-23261
Copyright: © Paray & Mir 2023. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: The study was supported by Ministry of Minority Affairs under the scheme MANF (Maulana Azad National Fellowship).
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: Authors are thankful to the head, Department of
Zoology, University of Kashmir, J&K, India for facilitating this study. We
are also highly thankful to Dr K.A. Subramanian, scientist E and
officer-in-charge, South Regional Centre Chennai, Zoological Survey of India,
for identification.
Abstract: The current study was
conducted to investigate the variety of Odonata in Kashmir from November 2020
to November 2022. The study revealed the existence of 24 species, which
includes 18 species of Anisoptera (dragonflies) under
eight genera & two families and six species of Zygoptera
(damselflies) in five genera & three families. New records of four species Orthetrum sabina
(Drury, 1770), O. internum McLachlan, 1894, Aeshna petalura
Martin, 1906, and Anax guttatus
(Burmeister, 1839) from the region are provided herewith. Libellulidae
(12 spp.) followed by Aeshnidae (six spp.) were
recorded as two dominant families. This study provides some important baseline
information on the odonates of Kashmir, Jammu &
Kashmir, India.
Keywords: Anisoptera,
bioindicators, diversity, damselflies, dragonflies, new record, Zygoptera.
Odonates (damselfies
and dragonfies) are an primitive winged insect group
order with origins in the Carboniferous era about 250 million years ago (Grimaldi
& Engel 2005; Tiple et al 2022). They are
well-known for their colourful bodies, enormous body
size, and association with aquatic surroundings. Except for Antarctica, all
continents have odonates, with tropical forests
having the highest species richness. (Kalkman et al.
2008). Odonates as being top predators both at larval
and adult stages play an important role in both aquatic and terrestrial food
chain (Sharma et al. 2007; Tiple et al 2012). They
are effective biocontrol agents of mosquitoes, sand flies, stable flies having
medical and veterinary importance and harmful insects of crops, orchards and foresthaving agricultural importance (Das et al. 2012; Tiple & Koparde 2015).Odonata
are reliable indicators of overall ecosystem health, since they are highly
sensitive to environmental changes (Andrew et al. 2008; Tiple
& Chandra 2013). Globally 6,392 species of odonates
have been described belonging to 693 genera and 18 families (Schoor & Paulson 2023) of which Indian fauna is
represented by 498 species in 154 genera and 18 families (Subramanian & Babu 2020).Indian Himalaya has 257 species in 112 genera
and 18 families (Subramanian & Babu 2018).
The earliest studies
on the odonates of Kashmir was carried out by Calvert
(1898) who reported 15 species, which was later updated by Fraser (1933, 1934,
1936) to 21 species. Further studies were added by Singh & Baijal (1954), Chowdhary & Das (1975), and Asahina (1978). In recent years, the odonate
fauna has been explored by Riyaz & Sivasankaran
(2021) who reported 10 species from Hirpora Wildlife
Sanctuary, Shopian, Kashmir and Qureshi et al. (2022)
reported 11 species from district Pulwama, Kashmir.
Regional
documentation of odonates is important for their
long-term conservation and management and to study other different aspects of
the taxa like taxonomy, biology, ecology, behavior and biogeography. So, the
present study was conducted to study Odonata fauna of Kashmir, J&K, India.
Materials and Methods
Study Area
Kashmir, province of
Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir is the northwestern part of Himalaya
bounded by Pir Panjal Range
from the south-west and Great Himalaya from the north-east. The area of the
valley is 15,853 km2 and geographically it lies between 33.30–34.40˚
N and 73.45–75.35˚ E. The average elevation level is 1,666 m although the
surrounding mountains are at 3,000–4,250 m. The climate of the valley is
temperate and has four distinct seasons (Winter, Spring, Summer, and Autumn).
Kashmir is with vast and variety of aquatic and terrestrial resources
manifested in the form of rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, forests, and
meadows. The present study was conducted across the Kashmir valley and 14 sites
were selected on the basis of altitude encompassing different ecosystems like
rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, paddy fields, agricultural fields,
forests, meadows, gardens, and parks (Figure 1).
Methods
The odonates of Kashmir were studied monthly from November 2020
to November 2022. All surveys and samplings were carried out during sunny days
using a combination of direct search technique (Sutherland 1996) and
opportunistic sighting methods. The photographs of the species were taken using
Canon EOS 200D II with 250 mm lens. The identification of species was done
using taxonomic literature (Fraser 1933, 1934, 1936) and field guides
(Subramanian 2009). For species nomenclature and classification, Kalkman et al. (2020) and Subramanian & Babu (2017) were followed. Based on the frequency of
sighting, species were locally categorized as Very Common (VC) when they were
sighted during 75–100% of the field outings, Common (CO) when the sighting was
between 50–75%, Occasional (OC) when the sighting was only 25–50%, and Rare
(RA) when the sighting was below 25% (Adarsh et al. 2014).
Results and Discussion
A total of 24 species
belonging to two suborders under 13 genera and five families were recorded
during the present study (Table 1, Image 1). Zygoptera
(damselflies) is represented by six species under five genera and three
families while Anisoptera (dragonflies) by 18 species
under eight genera and two families. The Libellulidae
was the most dominant family with 12 species followed by Aeshnidae
with six species among the Anisoptera. Coenagrionidae represented the most prevalent family of Zygoptera constituting three species followed by Lestidae and Synlestidae each
with two and one species respectively. Among these 24 species, 20 are already
reported while four species Orthetrum sabina (Drury, 1770), Orthetrum
internum McLachlan, 1894, Anax
guttatus (Burmeister, 1839), and Aeshna petalura
Martin, 1906 are reported first time from Kashmir, India.
On the basis of
occurrence of 24 species, six were found to be Very Common; seven species were
Common, nine species to be Occasional while two species were Rare. Among Zygoptera, Ischnura inarmata Calvert, 1898 was found to be the most common
species. Among the dragonflies Pantala flavescens (Fabricius, 1798),
Crocothemis servilia
(Drury, 1770), Sympetrum commixtum Selys, 1884, Sympetrum fonscolombii
(Selys, 1840), and Sympetrum striolatum
(Charpentier, 1840) were the most common species and Trithemis
aurora (Burmeister, 1839) and Orthetrum
internum McLachlan, 1894 were recorded as rare
species.
Odonates are an ecologically
significant insect group, hence their conservation is critical. Aquatic
ecosystems in Kashmir are at high risk of vulnerability due to anthropogenic
pressures such as deforestation, encroachment, pollution, and changes in land
use patterns. It is critical to raise public awareness and reduce anthropogenic
pressures in order to conserve the habitats of these important insects
(Sánchez-Bayo & Wyckhuys
2019). As this is a preliminary survey of odonate
fauna of Kashmir, we hence recommend more studies to be taken to assess this
important group in all aspects like taxonomy, biology, ecology and behavior and
biogeography.
Table 1 . Species
recorded during the present study.
|
|
Family /Scientific
name |
Observed frequency
class |
IUCN Red List status |
|
|
Lestidae |
|
|
|
01 |
Lestes barbarus (Fabricius,
1798) |
OC |
LC |
|
02 |
Sympecma paedisca (Brauer,
1877) |
C |
LC |
|
|
Synlestidae |
|
|
|
03 |
Megalestes major Selys, 1862 |
OC |
LC |
|
|
Coenagrionidae |
|
|
|
04 |
Ischnura inarmata Calvert, 1898 |
VC |
DD |
|
05 |
Ischnura forcipata Morton, 1907 |
OC |
LC |
|
06 |
Enallagma cyathigerum (Charpentier, 1840) |
OC |
LC |
|
|
Libellulidae |
|
|
|
07 |
Orthetrum sabina (Drury, 1770) |
OC |
LC |
|
08 |
Orthetrum triangulare (Selys,
1878) |
C |
LC |
|
09 |
Orthetrum glaucum (Brauer, 1865) |
C |
LC |
|
10 |
Orthetrum luzonicum (Brauer,
1868) |
OC |
LC |
|
11 |
Orthetrum internum McLachlan, 1894 |
R |
Unknown |
|
12 |
Orthetrum brunneum (Fonscolombe,
1837) |
C |
LC |
|
13 |
Crocothemis servilia (Drury, 1770) |
VC |
LC |
|
14 |
Libellula quadrimaculata Linnaeus, 1758 |
OC |
LC |
|
15 |
Sympetrum commixtum Selys,
1884 |
VC |
LC |
|
16 |
Sympetrum striolatum (Charpentier, 1840) |
VC |
LC |
|
17 |
Sympetrum fonscolombii (Selys,
1840) |
VC |
LC |
|
18 |
Pantala flavescens (Fabricius,
1798) |
VC |
LC |
|
|
Aeshnidae |
|
|
|
19 |
Anax parthenope (Selys,
1839) |
OC |
LC |
|
20 |
Anax guttatus (Burmeister, 1839) |
C |
LC |
|
21 |
Trithemis aurora (Burmeister, 1839) |
R |
LC |
|
22 |
Aeshna petalura Martin, 1906 |
OC |
LC |
|
23 |
Aeshna mixta Latreille, 1805 |
C |
LC |
|
24 |
Aeshna juncea (Linnaeus, 1758) |
C |
LC |
LS—Least Concern Ι
DD—Data Deficient Ι VC—Very Common Ι C—Common Ι OC—Occasional Ι R—Rare.
For
figure & images - - click here for full PDF
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