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First Michigan Specimens of Libellula Vibrans Fabricius (Odonata: Libellulidae)

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Abstract

Libellula vibrans Fabricius (Odonata: Libellulidae) is a large dragonfly previously known in Michigan only from sight or literature records. In 2005, two small populations were found in Wayne County, Michigan. ____________________ Libellula vibrans Fabricius (Odonata: Libellulidae), the Great Blue Skim-mer, is not mentioned in historical lists of Michigan Odonata (Byers 1927, Kormondy 1958, O'Brien 1997). Prior to 2005, there are no specimens in the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology's (UMMZ) insect collection, where voucher specimens from the Michigan Odonata Survey (MOS) are housed. A published report of L. vibrans for Michigan was by Nishida (1999) find-ing one individual on 22 June 1995 at a small wooded wetland in Westland, northwestern Wayne Co., Michigan. His paper also includes a photograph of a male from this location dated 10 July 1995. If he obtained a specimen, its whereabouts are unknown. A report of a sight record from Wayne County from 1999 (Hudson et al. 1999), as well as two sight reports from Washtenaw County from early July 2005 (M. F. O'Brien, pers. comm.) prompted me to search for this species, focusing on the Westland area. On 9 July 2005, Darrin O'Brien and I observed a single male in a small wooded swamp in the Holliday Nature Preserve in Westland, Wayne County, Michigan. As Westland is a highly developed suburb of Detroit, I believe this is the same spot in which Nishida (1999) made his observations; in fact, I checked this spot periodically in 2003 searching for L. vibrans. The site itself is a wooded wetland of less than one hectare. About 20% of the site is open water, and the rest liberally interspersed with buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) and many fallen trees. Water is shallow, probably not more than a half-meter deep in wet years, and is covered by duckweed (Lemna sp.) by mid-summer. Water overlays thick organic muck which also lines the shore. The wetland is situated in an ~40 ha forest fragment that is part of a larger (200-ha), somewhat linear forest preserve in northwestern Wayne County. We were able to clearly observe a male L. vibrans on our initial observation on 9 July but it flew off and could not be relocated. We returned the following day and made a systematic search of the area. After a half-hour, we located three to five male L. vibrans, characteristically hunting from perches in dappled shade and allowing close approach (Dunkle 2000, Abbott 2005). We took two voucher specimens which have been deposited in the Insect Collection at the UMMZ. Coincidentally, this was ten years to the day that Nishida photographed a male in what is presumably the same spot. On 29 August 2005, O'Brien and I were able to access another small (<2 ha) wooded pond on the north end of Willow Metropark, located in southwestern Wayne County, and ~20 km nearly due south of the Westland site. Earlier in the season this pond had been too wet for close approach. By late August, the pond itself had areas of standing water only a few centimeters deep surrounded by soft muck becoming overgrown with wetland plants such as Lobelia cardina-lis and Polygonum coccinea. The area is ringed by forest and connected by an intermittent stream to the Huron River, <100 m away. We immediately saw 92 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST Vol. 39, Nos. 1 & 2 several male L. vibrans perched on fallen trees overhanging the pond. When one would fly close to another, they would give chase but not far or vigorously. We took one voucher for this location. DISCUSSION Libellula vibrans has been recorded in 28 states and the province of On-tario. It is most common in the southeastern U.S. and southern Atlantic coast (Needham et al. 2000, Donnelly 2004). In Wisconsin, it is a species of special concern, represented only by historical records (~100 years old) from the Mil-waukee area (Smith et al. 2004). There are 25 specimens (22 from Cook Co.) in the Illinois State Museum from the northern third of Illinois (ISM 2003). The species is considered uncommon in Indiana with records for 15 counties (Curry 2001). The status in Ohio is uncommon and limited (Glotzhober and McShaffrey 2002). Its status in the northeastern part of the state is rare (Rosche 2002). There are only six records in Ontario, all from Essex and Kent counties in the extreme southwestern part of the province (OOA 2005). This is a species that would be difficult to overlook, being the largest libellulid in North America, with a total length of 56-63 mm (Needham et al. 2000). Female L. vibrans might be mistaken for female L. incesta Hagen, Slaty Skimmer, which is 50-52 mm long; however, the white face of both sexes of L. vibrans distinguishes it from the darker faces of the other species (Needham et al. 2000, Abbott 2005). Wayne County is heavily urbanized. When I began surveying its Odonata in 2000, there were only 43 species confirmed by specimens (Craves 2002). L. vibrans represents the 40th new county record I have confirmed since that time, demonstrating how much we have to learn about Odonata distribution even in previously well-surveyed, urbanized areas with limited habitat.
2006 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST 91
115911 Andover Drive, Dearborn, MI 48120. (email: jcraves@umich.edu).
FIRST MICHIGAN SPECIMENS OF
LIBELLULA vIBRANS
FABRICIUS (ODONATA: LIBELLULIDAE)
Julie A. Craves1
ABSTRACT
Libellula vibrans Fabricius (Odonata: Libellulidae) is a large dragony
previously known in Michigan only from sight or literature records. In 2005,
two small populations were found in Wayne County, Michigan.
____________________
Libellula vibrans Fabricius (Odonata: Libellulidae), the Great Blue Skim-
mer, is not mentioned in historical lists of Michigan Odonata (Byers 1927,
Kormondy 1958, O’Brien 1997). Prior to 2005, there are no specimens in the
University of Michigan Museum of Zoology’s (UMMZ) insect collection, where
voucher specimens from the Michigan Odonata Survey (MOS) are housed.
A published report of L. vibrans for Michigan was by Nishida (1999) nd-
ing one individual on 22 June 1995 at a small wooded wetland in Westland,
northwestern Wayne Co., Michigan. His paper also includes a photograph of
a male from this location dated 10 July 1995. If he obtained a specimen, its
whereabouts are unknown. A report of a sight record from Wayne County from
1999 (Hudson et al. 1999), as well as two sight reports from Washtenaw County
from early July 2005 (M. F. O’Brien, pers. comm.) prompted me to search for
this species, focusing on the Westland area.
On 9 July 2005, Darrin O’Brien and I observed a single male in a small
wooded swamp in the Holliday Nature Preserve in Westland, Wayne County,
Michigan. As Westland is a highly developed suburb of Detroit, I believe this is
the same spot in which Nishida (1999) made his observations; in fact, I checked
this spot periodically in 2003 searching for L. vibrans. The site itself is a wooded
wetland of less than one hectare. About 20% of the site is open water, and the
rest liberally interspersed with buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) and
many fallen trees. Water is shallow, probably not more than a half-meter deep
in wet years, and is covered by duckweed (Lemna sp.) by mid-summer. Water
overlays thick organic muck which also lines the shore. The wetland is situated
in an ~40 ha forest fragment that is part of a larger (200-ha), somewhat linear
forest preserve in northwestern Wayne County.
We were able to clearly observe a male L. vibrans on our initial observation
on 9 July but it ew off and could not be relocated. We returned the following
day and made a systematic search of the area. After a half-hour, we located
three to ve male L. vibrans, characteristically hunting from perches in dappled
shade and allowing close approach (Dunkle 2000, Abbott 2005). We took two
voucher specimens which have been deposited in the Insect Collection at the
UMMZ. Coincidentally, this was ten years to the day that Nishida photographed
a male in what is presumably the same spot.
On 29 August 2005, O’Brien and I were able to access another small (<2
ha) wooded pond on the north end of Willow Metropark, located in southwestern
Wayne County, and ~20 km nearly due south of the Westland site. Earlier in
the season this pond had been too wet for close approach. By late August, the
pond itself had areas of standing water only a few centimeters deep surrounded
by soft muck becoming overgrown with wetland plants such as Lobelia cardina-
lis and Polygonum coccinea. The area is ringed by forest and connected by an
intermittent stream to the Huron River, <100 m away. We immediately saw
92 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST Vol. 39, Nos. 1 & 2
several male L. vibrans perched on fallen trees overhanging the pond. When
one would y close to another, they would give chase but not far or vigorously.
We took one voucher for this location.
DISCUSSION
Libellula vibrans has been recorded in 28 states and the province of On-
tario. It is most common in the southeastern U.S. and southern Atlantic coast
(Needham et al. 2000, Donnelly 2004). In Wisconsin, it is a species of special
concern, represented only by historical records (~100 years old) from the Mil-
waukee area (Smith et al. 2004). There are 25 specimens (22 from Cook Co.) in
the Illinois State Museum from the northern third of Illinois (ISM 2003). The
species is considered uncommon in Indiana with records for 15 counties (Curry
2001). The status in Ohio is uncommon and limited (Glotzhober and McShaffrey
2002). Its status in the northeastern part of the state is rare (Rosche 2002).
There are only six records in Ontario, all from Essex and Kent counties in the
extreme southwestern part of the province (OOA 2005).
This is a species that would be difcult to overlook, being the largest
libellulid in North America, with a total length of 56-63 mm (Needham et al.
2000). Female L. vibrans might be mistaken for female L. incesta Hagen, Slaty
Skimmer, which is 50-52 mm long; however, the white face of both sexes of L.
vibrans distinguishes it from the darker faces of the other species (Needham
et al. 2000, Abbott 2005).
Wayne County is heavily urbanized. When I began surveying its Odonata
in 2000, there were only 43 species conrmed by specimens (Craves 2002). L.
vibrans represents the 40th new county record I have conrmed since that time,
demonstrating how much we have to learn about Odonata distribution even in
previously well-surveyed, urbanized areas with limited habitat.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to Mark O’Brien and Darrin O’Brien for their comments on this
paper.
LITERATURE CITED
Abbott, J. C. 2005. Dragonies and Damselies of Texas and the South-central United
States. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton, NJ.
Byers, F. C. 1927. An annotated list of the Odonata of Michigan. Occ. Pap. Mus. Zool.
Univ. Mich. 183: 1-15.
Craves, J. A. 2002. A preliminary list of the Odonata of Wayne Co. Mich. Birds and Nat.
Hist. 9: 7-16.
Curry, J. R. 2001. Dragonies of Indiana. Indiana Acad. Sci., Indianapolis, Indiana.
Donnelly, T. W. 2004. Distribution of North American Odonata. Part II: Macromiidae,
Cordullidae, and Libellulidae. Bull. Am. Odonatol. 8: 1-32.
Dunkle, S. W. 2000. Dragonies Through Binoculars. Oxford Univ. Press, New York,
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Ohio Biol. Surv., Columbus, OH.
Hudson, P., M. Chriscinski, and K. Tennessen. 1999. Libellula vibrans – a new Odonata
record for Michigan. Williamsonia 3(4): 7.
Illinois State Museum. [ISM] 2003. ISM Online Illinois Dragony and Damsely Col-
lection. <http://webdev.museum.state.il.us/ismdepts/zoology/odonata/display.html?
Genus=Libellula&Species=vibrans> Accessed 14 July 2005.
2006 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST 93
Kormondy, E. J. 1958. Catalogue of the Odonata of Michigan. Misc. Pub. Mus. Zool. No.
104. Univ. Mich. Mus. Zool., Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Needham, J. G., M. J. Westfall, Jr., and M. L. May. 2000. Dragonies of North America,
revised edition. Scientic Publishers, Gainesville, FL.
Nishida, T. 1999. The Odonata collected in the United States of America, mainly in the
State of Michigan. Aeschna 36: 1-20.
O’Brien, M. F. 1997. Michigan Odontata Survey Collector’s Handbook. Univ. Mich. Mus.
Zool., Ann Arbor, MI.
Ontario Odonata Atlas. [OOA] 2005. Natural Heritage Information Centre, Ontario
Ministry of Natural Resources. <http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/MNR/nhic/odonates/ohs.
html> Version 15-02-2005. Accessed 14 July 2005.
Rosche, L. 2002. Dragonies and Damselies of Northeast Ohio. Cleveland Mus. Nat
Hist., Cleveland, OH.
Smith, W. A., T. E. Vogt, and K. H. Gaines. 2004. Checklist of Wisconsin dragonies. Wis.
Entomol. Soc. Misc. Pub. 2. <http://www.entomology.wisc.edu/wes/pubs/dragony.
htm> Version Nov 2004. Accessed 14 July 2005.
... The first specimens of this species for the state were collected elsewhere in Wayne County in 2005 (Craves 2006). In 2007 it was found at multiple locations in the county, including a sight record at Humbug on 26 August. ...
... We consider our record to be the first valid one for the county. ten years to the day of photos appearing in Nishida's paper and at the same location, were the first vouchers for the state (Craves 2006a). Previous literature record: Kormondy (1958). ...
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Ninety species of Odonata are now verified by specimens for Wayne County, MI, a highly urbanized county in the southeastern corner of the state. This total represents 54% of the total number recorded in the state of Michigan. Thirty-three species not previously reported from Wayne County have been collected since 2000, despite a long history of collecting in the area and relatively little remaining appropriate habitat. These results suggest previous workers may have neglected to do much serious collecting here, and emphasize the need for collecting and monitoring Odonata in urban areas.
... Libellula vibrans, Great Blue Skimmer -A male seen perched along the wood-chipped path near the gate to Jefferson Avenue on 26 August was the first for this site. This species was first vouchered for the state in 2005 (Craves 2006), but was found at many new locations in the county in 2007. ...
Article
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complete as of December, 2013 The Great Lakes Region includes the states and Canadian provinces that drain into the Great Lakes. For this bibliography, The Great Lakes – Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario comprise a large area of freshwater unrivalled by anywhere else. The Odonata fauna has been studied in the region for over 150 years, and the body of literature is substantial enough to warrant its own bibliography. I purposely left out papers that dealt specifically with faunas not influenced by the Great Lakes, such as SE Pennsylvania and SE New York. It is as complete as I can make it, and if you see significant omissions, please contact me. An annotated list of new seasonal and county records for Ohio Dragonflies (Odonata). Ohio Journal of Science 93(4):105-108. Balciunas, J.K. 1980. New dragonfly (Odonata) records for Tuscarawas Co., including a species new to Ohio.
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Dragonflies of Indiana
  • J R Curry
Curry, J. R. 2001. Dragonflies of Indiana. Indiana Acad. Sci., Indianapolis, Indiana
Dragonflies and Damselflies of Ohio
  • R C Glotzhober
  • D Mcshaffrey
Glotzhober, R. C., and D. McShaffrey, eds. 2002. Dragonflies and Damselflies of Ohio. Ohio Biol. Surv., Columbus, OH.
Distribution of North American Odonata. Part II: Macromiidae, Cordullidae, and Libellulidae
  • T W Donnelly
Donnelly, T. W. 2004. Distribution of North American Odonata. Part II: Macromiidae, Cordullidae, and Libellulidae. Bull. Am. Odonatol. 8: 1-32.
Libellula vibrans -a new Odonata record for Michigan
  • P Hudson
  • M Chriscinski
  • K Tennessen
Hudson, P., M. Chriscinski, and K. Tennessen. 1999. Libellula vibrans -a new Odonata record for Michigan. Williamsonia 3(4): 7.