Some Odonatology References

This is not intended as a comprehensive listing, merely a starting point. Some of the literature has been superceded, certainly there are more identification guides for Europe and other areas than indicated here.

updated May 14, 2003 - corrected old links and updated publications
updated Sep 23, 1997 - updated SIO site and added Systematics group and WDA
updated Sep 21, 1996 - added Westfall and May

WWW Sites

Dragonflies and Damselflies Home Page (lots of good stuff for North America)

Societas Internationalis Odonatologica

publishes regular scientific journal, Odonatologica
newsletters for different regions (Canada - Walkeria, U.S. - Selysia)
a number of special publications including:
- Current Topic in Dragonfly Biology by Philip S. Corbet 1984
- The Dragonflies of the World - a systematic list of the extant species of Odonata vol 1 Zygoptera, Anisozygoptera by D. Allen, L.Davies and Pamela Tobin 1984
- Odonata at risk in conterminous United States and Canada - G.H.Bick 1983

Specialist Group for Systematic and Phylogenetic Odonatology
electronic journal PETALURA, odonate bibliography

British Dragonfly Society
members include dedicated amateurs and professionals from all over the world
publishes a regular journal

Worldwide Dragonfly Association (WDA)

General (Biology, Life History, ...)

Biology of Odonata, Philip S. Corbet, Annual Reviews of Entomology vol 25 pg 189-217 1980
A Biology of Dragonflies, Philip S. Corbet, Classey 1983
Dragonflies, Philip S.Corbet, Cynthia Longfield, and N.W. Moore, Collins 1985
Dragonflies - Behavior and Ecology of Odonata Philip S. Corbet, Cornell University Press 1999

North American Identification Guides

Damselflies of North America Minter J. Westfall and Mike L. May, Scientific Publishers Inc. 1996

Dragonflies of North America James G Needham, Minter J. Westfall Jr., and Michael L. May, Scientific Publishers 2000
revises, updates and considerable expands the earlier edition Dragonflies of North America James G. Needham and Minter J.Westfall, University of California Press 1954

The Odonata of Canada and Alaska in 3 volumes from University of Toronto Press (reprinted 1998)
Vol 1 Zygoptera E.M.Walker 1953
Vol 2 Anisoptera E.M.Walker 1958
Vol 3 Anisoptera (superfamily Libelluloidea) E.M.Walker and P.S. Corbet 1978

North American Field Guides

In identifying dragonflies from their appearance, it is important to remember that, in a number of common cases, especially for the damselflies, the males and females look different. Also, sexually immature males sometimes lack the coloration of fully mature males. These differences may or may not be indicated in general insect field guides.

Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders     This is a good general field guide.
    There are 36 odonate pictures (some illustrative, some not so) of 34 species.
    The male Green Darner is shown twice, once with the full adult coloration.
    The Red Skimmer is shown twice, one appears to have just emerged.
    The Brown Darner appears to have been pinned to the branch.
    Does anyone know how they picked out their common names?

Dragonflies through Binoculars Sidney Dunkle Oxford University Press 2000
dragonflies only (i.e. no damselflies)
photographs, range maps and species information

North American Regional Guides

While these guides were specifically written for certain political boundaries, few species are endemic to a single state or province. If you live nearby, and even if you don't, you may find the information contained in these various guides useful in your area. There are undoubtedly regional guides that I am not aware of do this list is probably incomplete.

British Columbia - The Dragonflies of British Columbia Robert A. Cannings and Kathleen M. Stuart 1977
    this booklet was published by the B.C. Provincial Museum
    lots of drawings, location maps, 254 pages
    out of print

California - Common Dragonflies of California by Kathy Biggs 2000
    pocket sized guide
    uses photographs - males and females are shown
    includes a number of damselflies

California - Dragonflies and Damselflies of California by Tim Manolis 2003
color drawings of the species currently known to be present in California
range maps and notes on behavior

Florida - Dragonflies of the Florida Peninsula, Bermuda, and the Bahamas (c 1989)
Damselflies of the Florida Peninsula, Bermuda, and the Bahamas (c 1990)
both by Sidney Dunkle

Over 100 color photos are contained in each book (good value at about $15 US each).
94 dragonfly and 46 damselfly species are pictured in their living state.
The photos are well labeled - males, females and immatures are identified.
Most of the damselflies are shown in profile; some of the subtle differences in the markings between species shown in the book and those illustrated with drawings in other material may not be apparent.
The text includes notes on identification, ecology and behavior.
About a third of the species shown are present in other regions of North America.
Undoubtedly the best field guides for North American Odonata, although not widely available.

Kansas - Checklist of Kansas Damselflies by Roy Beckemeyer and Donald Huggins Mar 1998
    Checklist of Kansas Dragonflies by Roy Beckemeyer and Donald Huggins Feb 1997
    these pamphlets are part of the Kansas School Naturalist series from Emporia State University
    not all species are shown (photographs are used for those that are)

Washington - Dragonflies of Washington by Dennis Paulson 1999
this booklet is a publication of the Seattle Audubon Society
the state's damselflies are included

Wisconsin - Guide to the Common Dragonflies of Wisconsin by Karl and Dorothy Legler and Dave Westover
includes 3 damselflies

Some European Identification and Field Guides

The Dragonflies of Great Britain and Ireland Cyril O. Hammond, revised by Robert Merritt, Harley Books, 1983
excellent color drawings, details of nymphs, distribution maps in 10km squares

Numerous local publications for Great Britain including:

Derbyshire Dragonflies, Roderick Dunn 1984
West Wales Dragonflies,Stephen Coker and Tony Fox 1985 (includes maps, records)
The Dragonflies of New Forest, Noelle and Tony Welstead 1984
An Atlas of Oxfordshire Dragonflies, J.M Campbell 1983

Unsere Libellen, Gerhard Jurzitza, Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung, 1978
pretty good photos supplemented by text and drawings, 71 pages

A Field Guide to the Dragonflies of Britain, Europe and North Africa
J. d'Aguilar, J-L Dommanget and R. Prechac Collins 1986

Magazine Articles

Smithsonian, vol 27 No. 4 July 1996 page 70, Dragonflies... by Richard Conniff (wind tunnel picture)
Natural History, vol 93 No. 7 1984 page 32, Dragonfly Monopoly by Vicky McMillan
Canadian Geographic, vol 104 No. 3 1984 page 62, Dragonflies... by Bernard Jackson (good photographs)

Ron Lyons (volunteer 1990-1999)
Chula Vista Nature Center, 1000 Gunpowder Point Drive, Chula Vista, CA 91910-1201