Abstract
Insects are one of the most diverse groups of animals in terrestrial ecosystems, and are thus a good model system to study macrogeographic patterns in species’ distributions. Here we perform a biogeographical analysis of the dragonflies and damselflies in the Valencian Country (Eastern Iberian Peninsula). We also compare the species present in this territory with those in the adjacent territories of Catalonia and Aragon, and with those present in the whole Iberian Peninsula. Furthermore, we update the list of species of dragonflies and damselflies in the Valencian territory (65 species), and discuss the current status of two of them: Macromia splendens and Lindenia tetraphylla. Our results highlight that the Valencian Country has a higher proportion of Ethiopian elements but a lower proportion of Eurosiberian elements than Catalonia and Aragon. We also emphasize the importance of volunteer work in providing new knowledge on this group of iconic insects, and the relevance of museum collections in preserving them. The role of climate change in the distribution of Odonata is also discussed.
Highlights
Patterns of animal distribution depend on several factors, including abiotic factors such as geological history, climate or environmental conditions, and biotic factors such as food resources or competition
One important consideration is that Cordulia aenea was included in the Iberian list because we considered the Iberian Peninsula in a broad sense (Torralba–Burrial, 2009b), and adding two areas which do not belong to the Iberian Peninsula in a strict sense: la Vall d’Aran and a zone of Pallars Sobirà (Martín et al, 2016)
The compilation that we present here contains a total of Iberian species, of which 65 were registered in the Valencian Country, 70 in Catalonia and 63 in Aragon
Summary
Patterns of animal distribution depend on several factors, including abiotic factors such as geological history, climate or environmental conditions, and biotic factors such as food resources or competition. As one of the most diverse taxa in terrestrial ecosystems, insects have provided a large body of knowledge on the interactions between species and their environment In this group, biogeographic patterns of distribution have been studied with data from entomological collections (Fountain et al, 2016), along with data from specimens directly observed in the field. Observational data often come from volunteers, especially in North America and in Europe where an emerging citizen science is becoming increasingly popular This type of data collection is becoming an effective way to monitor spatiotemporal changes in species distributions in large geographical areas (Donnelly et al, 2014) and is relevant in the face of current global changes, which can, for example, generate spatial and temporal mismatches in species interactions (Schweiger et al, 2008)
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