A review of odonatology in freshwater applied ecology and conservation science

Abstract

The academic study of dragonflies and damselflies (odonatology) is well established, but relatively limited attention has been given to odonates in the context of applied ecology and conservation science. We used the Web of Science ™ and Odonatological Abstract Service (ISSN 1438-0269) to capture trends in primary literature, characterize study features (habitats, life stages, etc.), identify research themes, and suggest future directions for odonatology in freshwater applied ecology and conservation science. We found no papers in this area prior to 1980, and 411 papers from 1980 through 2013. Nearly 75% of these papers were recent (since 2005) and >40% were very recent (since 2010). We identified several broad and overlapping research themes: 1) model taxa, 2) tools and indicators, 3) odonate-centered work, and 4) methodological issues and improvements (field sampling, data modeling/simulation, conservation/landscape-scale genetics). We found more reliance on fieldbased observational approaches than experiments and model-driven exercises, although the number of papers using model-driven exercises is rapidly increasing. We found a strong focus on adult stages, odonate assemblages, the Odonata as a whole, and studies of particular species. We identified research priorities in areas such as ecological valuation and management, monitoring and assessment, climate change and landscape planning, concordance with other taxa, effects of urbanization, data modeling/simulation, and rare-species ecology and conservation. To help establish an identity and facilitate communication, we suggest naming this diverse realm "applied odonatology". We think applied odonatology has a good future for a range of topics from conservation genetics and population ecology to assessments of anthropogenic impacts and the conservation of biodiversity. Key words: dragonflies, assessment, climate change, monitoring, landscape planning, freshwater health, biodiversity conservationThe academic study of dragonflies and damselflies (odonatology) is well established. However, relatively few odonatologists work outside of taxonomy and systematics, behavioral ecology, evolutionary ecology, and other prominent areas of classical research. The major books (Corbet 1999, Córdoba-Aguilar 2008), treatises (e.g., Corbet 1980, Stoks and Córdoba-Aguilar 2012), and flagship journals of odonatology reveal a productive legacy, but also relatively limited attention to matters of applied ecology and conservation science. For example, <5% of the 275 papers published during [2009][2010][2011][2012][2013] in Odonatologica and the International Journal of Odonatology are clearly relevant to applied ecology or conservation science. Nevertheless, the relatively few odonatologists working in this area and researchers based in other fields who often or sometimes use odonates as principal study subjects are making important contributions.A growing body of dragonfly-related research deals with the study or use of odonates in the context of freshwater applied ecolo...

Egg‐laying traits reflect shifts in dragonfly assemblages in response to different amount of tropical forest cover

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Improving taxonomic resolution in large‐scale freshwater biodiversity monitoring: an example using wetlands and Odonata

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