Dragonfly species discovered

As part of a survey project funded by the Biodiversity Fund, dragonfly and grasshopper species are being documented in the Kalkalpen National Park in a two-year project. Biologists Herbert Kerschbaumsteiner and Erich Weigand are exploring alpine pastures, stream valleys, forest bogs, mountain lakes and small ponds in the protected area.

A remarkable dragonfly was found on a renaturalized, boggy hillside meadow south of the Karlhütte on the Hengstpass. For the first time, the southern blue darter Orthetrum brunneum was found in the Kalkalpen National Park at around 1,000 meters above sea level. This discovery represents the first confirmed record of this species in the Upper Austrian Pre-Alps. "The species was first described in Bavaria and is therefore called the Southern Blue Arrow (southern Germany). "Coming from the north, this species is advancing further and further into the northern Alpine valleys together with other warmth-loving species," says Herbert Kerschbaumsteiner.

The dragonfly is classified throughout Austria in the Red List endangerment category "Endangered" NT (Near Threatened). Due to its rarity in the Alpine region, its first appearance in the Kalkalpen National Park is of particular importance. A total of nine individuals of this species were observed. This brings the number of dragonfly species occurring in the national park to 16.

For the dragonfly fauna, the open land and especially the cultivated landscape of the national park is of particular importance, as dragonflies also use forest-free grassy biotopes as hunting and maturing habitats. The larvae of dragonflies need water, which is why dragonflies are mainly found near bodies of water. Some species also move further away from water just to hunt. Dragonfly larvae usually develop in the shallow bank zones of stagnant bodies of water. Only a few species are found in flowing waters. However, excessive upwelling with heavy cattle and the associated damage to sensitive habitats such as small ponds, spring swamps, wet meadows and moorland have a negative impact on the population of organisms that depend on these habitats.

All dragonfly species are predators and feed on small insects that they catch in flight. These flying acrobats reach speeds of up to 50 km/h, making them one of the fastest insects in the world. Dragonflies have large compound eyes on their heads, which can consist of up to 30,000 individual eyes in some species. In addition, they have three small compound eyes on the top of their head between the so-called "compound eyes", which probably serve as a balance organ and to control flight movements. While we humans only have three color receptors (blue, green, red), dragonflies have over 30 of them. Dragonflies therefore have color vision that is completely unimaginable for us humans.