List of Odonata species of Slovenia

The list of Odonata species of Slovenia includes 72 species of dragonflies and damselflies (Slovene: kačji pastirji) for which reliable records exist from the present-day territory of Slovenia, including one that has not been seen since the 1960s and is presumed to have been extirpated (locally extinct), but could have simply been overlooked. The list is based on two reference works: Atlas of the Dragonflies (Odonata) of Slovenia,^[2] a joint publication of the Slovene Odonatological Society and the Slovene Centre for Cartography of Fauna and Flora from 1997, and the newer Atlas of the European dragonflies and damselflies (2015),^[3] supported by other, more recent publications in which new species described after 1997 were documented.

Odonata species from the territory of present-day Slovenia were systematically studied by the naturalists Johann Weikhard von Valvasor and Giovanni Antonio Scopoli as early as the 17th and 18th centuries; however, the first systematic compendium was only published in the 1960s by the Slovene zoologist Boštjan Kiauta [sl].^[1] The distribution of Odonata in Slovenia is now fairly well known by international standards, with Slovenia having been one of the first European countries for which a full account of faunistic data (an "atlas") was published. The number of species (72) represents almost exactly half of the European species (143) and is comparable with the number of species of Germany (81) and Spain (80), both much larger countries.^[3] Slovenian odonate fauna is therefore considered highly diverse, which is attributed to the country's position on the junction of several ecoregions where many species reach the border of their distribution.^[1]

The list

Taxonomic order and nomenclature follow the Atlas of the European dragonflies and damselflies (2015),^[3] while Atlas of the Dragonflies (Odonata) of Slovenia is the primary source of the data,^[2] with notes explaining discrepancies.

Columns with scientific and vernacular names in English and Slovene are followed by conservation status as determined by the country's official Red list of Odonata (Rdeči seznam kačjih pastirjev).^[4] Categories of conservation status according to this list are as follows:

extinct species (EX): once reliably recorded native populations that have been exterminated in the past throughout the whole territory of the Republic of Slovenia.
presumed extinct species (EX?): once reliably recorded native populations which haven't been seen for a longer period despite targeted searching, providing grounds for the presumption of local extinction.
endangered species (E): the existence of this species on the territory of Slovenia is not likely in the future if the reasons for endangerment are not removed. Population size is critically low or is rapidly diminishing in a large part of the areal.
vulnerable species (V): risk of becoming endangered (E) if the negative influences persist. Population size is being reduced in a large part of the areal, whereas the species is sensitive to changes in the environment or inhabits sensitive habitats.
rare species (R): potentially vulnerable due to its rarity in Slovenia, may rapidly become endangered (E) in case of negative influences.
non-defined (I): presumed endangered, but there is insufficient data to assign to any of the above categories.

Most (24) of the species included in the Red List are also protected according to the newer Ordinance on protected native species of animals (Uredba o zavarovanih prosto živečih živalskih vrstah) from 2004, which annulled the previous ordinance on which the Red list is based.^[5] The protected species are labelled with an additional asterisk (*), while the old Red list statuses are retained for reference.

Most species native to Slovenia are not globally threatened and are regarded least-concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). There are two exceptions – both Cordulegaster species – that are near-threatened. Additionally, the southern damselfly (Coenagrion mercuriale) is near-threatened as well, but that species is almost certainly extirpated.^{[citation needed]}

Damselflies (Zygoptera)

Damselflies (Zygoptera)
Family	Scientific name	Vernacular name in English and Slovene	Status (SLO)	Status (IUCN)	Notes
Spreadwings (Lestidae)	Chalcolestes parvidens	eastern willow spreadwing (presenetljiva pazverca)	I	LC	C. parvidens and C. viridis are difficult to distinguish, and were split only in 1997.^[3] In the Slovene Atlas they are treated as a single species (both are present in Slovenia).
	Chalcolestes viridis	willow emerald damselfly (zelena pazverca)		LC	See the note for C. parvidens.
	Lestes barbarus	southern emerald damselfly (grmiščna zverca)	V	LC
	Lestes dryas	emerald spreadwing (obrežna zverca)	E*	LC
	Lestes macrostigma	dark spreadwing (južna zverca)	R*	LC
	Lestes sponsa	emerald damselfly (obvodna zverca)		LC
	Lestes virens	small spreadwing (loška zverca)	E*	LC
	Sympecma fusca	common winter damselfly (prisojni zimnik)		LC
Demoiselles (Calopterygidae)	Calopteryx splendens	banded demoiselle (pasasti bleščavec)		LC
Demoiselles (Calopterygidae)	Calopteryx virgo	beautiful demoiselle (modri bleščavec)		LC
White-legged damselflies (Platycnemididae)	Platycnemis pennipes	white-legged damselfly (sinji presličar)		LC
Narrow-winged damselflies (Coenagrionidae)	Ceriagrion tenellum	small red damselfly (rdeči voščenec)	E*	LC
	Coenagrion hastulatum	northern damselfly (barjanski škratec)	E*	LC	Thought extirpated in the late 20th century, the species was rediscovered in 1999.^[6]
	Coenagrion mercuriale	southern damselfly (brzični škratec)	EX?*	NT	Last recorded by Boštjan Kiauta in the 1960s, the species is cited in the Slovene Atlas as possibly extirpated, while the newer European Atlas no longer lists it. Not included in the total number of species.
	Coenagrion ornatum	ornate bluet (koščični škratec)	V	LC
	Coenagrion puella	azure damselfly (travniški škratec)		LC
	Coenagrion pulchellum	variable damselfly (suhljati škratec)	V	LC
	Coenagrion scitulum	dainty damselfly (povodni škratec)	V	LC
	Enallagma cyathigerum	common blue damselfly (bleščeči zmotec)		LC
	Erythromma lindenii	goblet-marked damselfly (prodni paškratec)	V	LC
	Erythromma najas	red-eyed damselfly (veliki rdečeokec)		NE
	Erythromma viridulum	small red-eyed damselfly (mali rdečeokec)		LC
	Ischnura elegans	blue-tailed damselfly (modri kresničar)		LC
	Ischnura pumilio	scarce blue-tailed damselfly (bledi kresničar)		LC
	Pyrrhosoma nymphula	large red damselfly (rani plamenec)		LC

Dragonflies (Anisoptera)

Dragonflies (Anisoptera)
Family	Scientific name	Vernacular name in English and Slovene	Status (SLO)	Status (IUCN)	Notes
Hawkers (Aeshnidae)	Aeshna affinis	southern migrant hawker (višnjeva deva)	V	LC
	Aeshna caerulea	azure hawker (šotna deva)	R*	LC	Only one record for Slovenia
	Aeshna cyanea	southern hawker (zelenomodra deva)		LC
	Aeshna grandis	brown hawker (rjava deva)	V	LC
	Aeshna isoceles	green-eyed hawker (deviški pastir)	V	LC
	Aeshna juncea	common hawker (barjanska deva)	V	LC
	Aeshna mixta	migrant hawker (bleda deva)		LC
	Aeshna subarctica	subarctic darner (mahovna deva)	R*	LC	^[7]
	Aeshna viridis	green hawker (zelena deva)	E*	LC
	Anax ephippiger	vagrant emperor (afriški minljivec)		LC
	Anax imperator	emperor dragonfly (veliki spremljevalec)		LC
	Anax parthenope	lesser emperor (modroriti spremljevalec)		LC
	Brachytron pratense	hairy dragonfly (zgodnji trstničar)	V	LC
Clubtails (Gomphidae)	Gomphus flavipes	yellow-legged dragonfly (rumeni porečnik)	EX?*	LC	Thought extirpated in the late 20th century, rediscovered in 2011;^[8] not yet included in the official Red list.
	Gomphus vulgatissimus	common clubtail (popotni porečnik)	V	LC
	Lindenia tetraphylla	bladetail (velika peščenka)	EX*	LC	Last recorded by Boštjan Kiauta in 1960s in Fiesa, it is considered extirpated.
	Onychogomphus forcipatus	small pincertail (bledi peščenec)		LC
	Ophiogomphus cecilia	green snaketail (kačji potočnik)	V*	LC
Spiketails (Cordulegastridae)	Cordulegaster bidentata	sombre goldenring (povirni studenčar)	V	NT
Spiketails (Cordulegastridae)	Cordulegaster heros	balkan goldenring (veliki studenčar)	V*	NT	One of the largest European dragonflies; it was included in the annex of the Habitats Directive when Slovenia joined the European Union.
Emeralds (Corduliidae)	Cordulia aenea	downy emerald (močvirski lebduh)		LC
	Epitheca bimaculata	Eurasian baskettail (nosna jezerka)	V	NE
	Somatochlora alpestris	alpine emerald (alpski lesketnik)	R*	NE	^[9]
	Somatochlora arctica	northern emerald (barjanski lesketnik)	R*	NE
	Somatochlora flavomaculata	yellow-spotted emerald (pegasti lesketnik)	V	LC
	Somatochlora meridionalis	balkan emerald (sredozemski lesketnik)		LC
	Somatochlora metallica	brilliant emerald (kovinski lesketnik)	E*	LC
Skimmers (Libellulidae)	Crocothemis erythraea	scarlet dragonfly (opoldanski škrlatec)		LC
	Leucorrhinia caudalis	lilypad whiteface (mrtvični spreletavec)	E*	LC
	Leucorrhinia dubia	white-faced darter (barjanski spreletavec)	E*	LC
	Leucorrhinia pectoralis	large white-faced darter (dristavični spreletavec)	E*	LC
	Libellula depressa	broad-bodied chaser (modri ploščec)		LC
	Libellula fulva	scarce chaser (črni ploščec)	V	LC
	Libellula quadrimaculata	four-spotted chaser (lisasti ploščec)		LC
	Orthetrum albistylum	white-tailed skimmer (temni modrač)		LC
	Orthetrum brunneum	southern skimmer (sinji modrač)		LC
	Orthetrum cancellatum	black-tailed skimmer (prodni modrač)		LC
	Orthetrum coerulescens	keeled skimmer (mali modrač)		LC
	Selysiothemis nigra	black pennant (temni slaniščar)		LC	First sighted in 2012 at Škocjanski zatok [sl] nature reserve near Koper;^[10] not yet included in the official Red list.
	Sympetrum danae	black darter (črni kamenjak)	E*	LC
	Sympetrum depressiusculum	spotted darter (stasiti kamenjak)	E*	NE
	Sympetrum flaveolum	yellow-winged darter (rumeni kamenjak)	R*	LC
	Sympetrum fonscolombii	red-veined darter (malinovordeči kamenjak)		LC
	Sympetrum meridionale	southern darter (sredozemski kamenjak)	R*	LC
	Sympetrum pedemontanum	banded darter (pasasti kamenjak)	R*	LC
	Sympetrum sanguineum	ruddy darter (krvavordeči kamenjak)		LC
	Sympetrum striolatum	common darter (progasti kamenjak)		LC
	Sympetrum vulgatum	vagrant darter (navadni kamenjak)		LC

Excluded species

The Slovene Atlas mentions four additional species as records from older literature, but there is insufficient evidence for their presence so they are excluded from that list as well:^[2]

Irish damselfly (Coenagrion lunulatum) – one recorded sighting in the 1950s, but Slovenia lies far outside the species' distribution range so it was most likely misidentified
large pincertail (Onychogomphus uncatus) – one sighting with a photograph, but the specimen cannot be reliably distinguished from the similar Onychogomphus forcipatus in the picture
golden-ringed dragonfly (Cordulegaster boltonii) – records from the 1950s belong to Cordulegaster heros which was formally split from C. boltonii in 1979
northern white-faced darter (Leucorrhinia rubicunda) – one doubtful sighting

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Bedjanič, Matjaž (2003). "Kačji pastirji". In Sket, Boris; Gogala, Matija; Kuštor, Valerija (eds.). Živalstvo Slovenije (in Slovenian). Ljubljana: Tehniška založba Slovenije. pp. 281–289. ISBN 86-365-0410-4.
^ ^a ^b ^c Kotarac, Mladen (1997). Atlas kačjih pastirjev (Odonata) Slovenije z Rdečim seznamom [Atlas of the dragonflies (Odonata) of Slovenia with the Red Data List]. Miklavž na Dravskem polju: Centre for Cartography of Fauna and Flora. ISBN 961-90512-0-3.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Boudot, Jean-Pierre; Kalkman, Vincent J., eds. (2015). Atlas of the European dragonflies and damselflies. Netherlands: KNNV Publishing. ISBN 978-90-5011-4806.
^ "Pravilnik o uvrstitvi ogroženih rastlinskih in živalskih vrst v rdeči seznam". Uradni list Republike Slovenije (in Slovenian). No. 82. 24 September 2002. Archived from the original on 22 June 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2020. - Priloga 21: Rdeči seznam kačjih pastirjev (Odonata) Archived 2022-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
^ "Uredba o zavarovanih prosto živečih živalskih vrstah". Uradni list Republike Slovenije. No. 46. 30 April 2004. - Priloga 1: Seznam živalskih vrst, katerih živali so zavarovane Archived 2021-07-19 at the Wayback Machine
^ Bedjanič, Matjaž; Weldt, Saso (2000). "Rediscovery of Coenagrion hastulatum (Charpentier, 1825) in Slovenia (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae)". Exuviae. 7 (1): 27–30.
^ Bedjanič, Matjaž (1999). "Aeshna subarctica elisabethae Djakonov 1922, new for the odonate fauna of Slovenia (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae)". Exuvia. 6 (1): 7–10.
^ Šácha, Dušan; Bedjanič, Matjaž. "Ponovno odkritje ogroženega rumenega porečnika Gomphus flavipes (Charpentier, 1825) v Sloveniji po pol stoletja (Odonata: Gomphidae)" [Rediscovery of the endangered river clubtail Gomphus flavipes (Charpentier, 1825) in Slovenia after half a century (Odonata: Gomphidae)] (PDF). Natura Sloveniae (in Slovenian). 13 (2): 37–43. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2020-10-23.
^ Brockhaus, Thomas (1999). "Ein Nachweis von Aeshna subarctica elisabethae Djakonov, 1922 und Somatochlora alpestris (Sélys, 1840) im Hochmoor Šijec auf der Pokljuka, NW Slowenien (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae, Corduliidae)" [A proof of Aeshna subarctica elisabethae Djakonov, 1922 and Somatochlora alpestris (Sélys, 1840) in the Šijec high marsh on Pokljuka, NW Slovenia (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae, Corduliidae)]. Exuviae (in German). 6 (1): 11–13.
^ Šalamun, Ali (2012-08-17). "Kačji pastir temni slaniščar prvič opažen v Sloveniji v Škocjanskem zatoku!" [The black pennant dragonfly first sighted in Slovenia in Škocjanski zatok!] (in Slovenian). Naravni rezervat Škocjanski zatok. Archived from the original on 2021-12-02. Retrieved 2016-04-16.

External links

Slovene Dragonfly Society (in Slovenian) Archived 2021-04-11 at the Wayback Machine
Odonata Archived 2020-10-27 at the Wayback Machine - pictures in the BioPortal database, maintained by the Centre for Cartography of Fauna and Flora

[ZivSlo-1] Bedjanič, Matjaž (2003). "Kačji pastirji". In Sket, Boris; Gogala, Matija; Kuštor, Valerija (eds.). Živalstvo Slovenije (in Slovenian). Ljubljana: Tehniška založba Slovenije. pp. 281–289. ISBN 86-365-0410-4.

[Kotarac1997-2] Kotarac, Mladen (1997). Atlas kačjih pastirjev (Odonata) Slovenije z Rdečim seznamom [Atlas of the dragonflies (Odonata) of Slovenia with the Red Data List]. Miklavž na Dravskem polju: Centre for Cartography of Fauna and Flora. ISBN 961-90512-0-3.

[Boudot-3] Boudot, Jean-Pierre; Kalkman, Vincent J., eds. (2015). Atlas of the European dragonflies and damselflies. Netherlands: KNNV Publishing. ISBN 978-90-5011-4806.

[4] "Pravilnik o uvrstitvi ogroženih rastlinskih in živalskih vrst v rdeči seznam". Uradni list Republike Slovenije (in Slovenian). No. 82. 24 September 2002. Archived from the original on 22 June 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2020. - Priloga 21: Rdeči seznam kačjih pastirjev (Odonata) Archived 2022-06-17 at the Wayback Machine

[5] "Uredba o zavarovanih prosto živečih živalskih vrstah". Uradni list Republike Slovenije. No. 46. 30 April 2004. - Priloga 1: Seznam živalskih vrst, katerih živali so zavarovane Archived 2021-07-19 at the Wayback Machine

[6] Bedjanič, Matjaž; Weldt, Saso (2000). "Rediscovery of Coenagrion hastulatum (Charpentier, 1825) in Slovenia (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae)". Exuviae. 7 (1): 27–30.

[7] Bedjanič, Matjaž (1999). "Aeshna subarctica elisabethae Djakonov 1922, new for the odonate fauna of Slovenia (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae)". Exuvia. 6 (1): 7–10.

[SachaBedjanic2011-8] Šácha, Dušan; Bedjanič, Matjaž. "Ponovno odkritje ogroženega rumenega porečnika Gomphus flavipes (Charpentier, 1825) v Sloveniji po pol stoletja (Odonata: Gomphidae)" [Rediscovery of the endangered river clubtail Gomphus flavipes (Charpentier, 1825) in Slovenia after half a century (Odonata: Gomphidae)] (PDF). Natura Sloveniae (in Slovenian). 13 (2): 37–43. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2020-10-23.

[9] Brockhaus, Thomas (1999). "Ein Nachweis von Aeshna subarctica elisabethae Djakonov, 1922 und Somatochlora alpestris (Sélys, 1840) im Hochmoor Šijec auf der Pokljuka, NW Slowenien (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae, Corduliidae)" [A proof of Aeshna subarctica elisabethae Djakonov, 1922 and Somatochlora alpestris (Sélys, 1840) in the Šijec high marsh on Pokljuka, NW Slovenia (Anisoptera: Aeshnidae, Corduliidae)]. Exuviae (in German). 6 (1): 11–13.

[10] Šalamun, Ali (2012-08-17). "Kačji pastir temni slaniščar prvič opažen v Sloveniji v Škocjanskem zatoku!" [The black pennant dragonfly first sighted in Slovenia in Škocjanski zatok!] (in Slovenian). Naravni rezervat Škocjanski zatok. Archived from the original on 2021-12-02. Retrieved 2016-04-16.

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