A preliminary checklist of dragonflies and damselflies (Insecta: Odonata) of Vakkom Grama Panchayath, Thiruvanthapuram District, Kerala, India

Abstract

A one-year study was conducted at Vakkom Grama Panchayath, Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala, to assess the diversity of odonates. We report 49 species, which include 31 species of Anisoptera (dragonflies) and 18 species of Zygoptera (damselflies). Among dragonflies, the family Libellulidae dominated with 26 species, while Coenagrionidae with 10 species was the dominant family among the damselflies. The odonate diversity of Vakkom Grama Panchayath accounted for 28% of the odonates in Kerala and 25% of the odonates of the Western Ghats. Vakkom Grama Panchayath also recorded the presence of Mortonagrion varralli which is an uncommon species in Kerala. This study provides some important baseline information on the odonates of one of the grama panchayaths in Kerala, India. An updated checklist of 57 species of odonates of Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala is also provided.