Madagascar emperor (Anax tumorifer) male

''Anax'' (from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

', "lord, master, king") is a genus of

dragonflies A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of true dragonfly are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threaten ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Aeshnidae The Aeshnidae, also called aeshnids, hawkers, or darners, is a family of dragonflies. The family includes the largest dragonflies found in North America and Europe and among the largest dragonflies on the planet. Description Common worldwide or ...

. It includes species such as the emperor dragonfly, ''Anax imperator''. ''Anax'' spp. are very large dragonflies. They generally have light-colored bodies and dark tails with pale markings. Some species are migratory ('' Anax junius'').

Species

The

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

''Anax'' includes these species: *''

Anax amazili ''Anax amazili'', the Amazon darner, is a tropical species of dragonfly of the family Aeshnidae. Distribution The Amazon darner is a tropical species with a wide distribution, and can be found from the southern United States southward to Argenti ...

'' – Amazon darner *''

Anax bangweuluensis ''Anax bangweuluensis'', the swamp emperor, is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae. It is found in Botswana and Zambia. Its natural habitats are rivers and swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Prin ...

'' – swamp emperor *'' Anax chloromelas'' – dark emperor *''

Anax concolor ''Anax concolor'', the blue-spotted comet, is a species of darner in the dragonfly family Aeshnidae The Aeshnidae, also called aeshnids, hawkers, or darners, is a family of dragonflies. The family includes the largest dragonflies found in Nort ...

'' – blue-spotted comet darner *''

Anax congoliath (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax ephippiger ''Anax ephippiger'', the vagrant emperor, is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae. It migrates to Afro-tropical, Europe, central and southern Asia through monsoon winds. Distribution It is found in Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Cameroon ...

'' – vagrant emperor *'' Anax fumosus'' *'' Anax georgius'' – Kimberley emperor *'' Anax gladiator'' – swordbearer emperor *'' Anax gibbosulus'' – green emperor *'' Anax guttatus'' – lesser green emperor *'' Anax immaculifrons'' – magnificent emperor *''

Anax imperator The emperor dragonfly or blue emperor (''Anax imperator'') is a large species of hawker dragonfly of the family Aeshnidae, averaging in length. The generic name ''Anax'' is from the ancient Greek , "lord"; the specific epithet ''imperator'' is t ...

'' – emperor dragonfly, blue emperor *'' Anax indicus'' – elephant emperor *'' Anax junius'' – common green darner *'' Anax longipes'' – comet darner *''

Anax maclachlani (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax mandrakae (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax nigrofasciatus (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' – blue-spotted emperor *''

Anax panybeus (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *'' Anax papuensis'' Burmeister, 1839 – Australian emperor *'' Anax parthenope'' – lesser emperor *''

Anax piraticus (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax pugnax (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax selysi (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax speratus ''Anax speratus'', the orange emperor, is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Somalia, ...

'' – orange emperor *''

Anax strenuus The giant Hawaiian darner, also known as the giant Hawaiian dragonfly or pinao (''Anax strenuus''), is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae. It is one of two species of dragonfly that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands The Hawaii ...

'' – giant Hawaiian darner, pinao *''

Anax tristis (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' – black emperor, magnificent emperor *''

Anax tumorifer (Greek: ; from earlier , ') is an ancient Greek word for "tribal chief, lord, (military) leader".. It is one of the two Greek titles traditionally translated as "king", the other being basileus, and is inherited from Mycenaean Greece. It is nota ...

'' *''

Anax walsinghami ''Anax walsinghami'' is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae (darners), in the suborder Anisoptera ("dragonflies"). The species is known generally as the giant darner or giant green darner. The distribution range of ''Anax walsinghami'' ...

'' – giant darner

Taxonomic history

The genus ''Anax'' was described by

William Elford Leach William Elford Leach FRS (2 February 1791 – 25 August 1836) was an English zoologist and marine biologist. Life and work Elford Leach was born at Hoe Gate, Plymouth, the son of an attorney. At the age of twelve he began a medical appren ...

in 1815 when he published in Brewster's '' Edinburgh Encyclopedia''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q633289 Aeshnidae Anisoptera genera Odonata of Australia Odonata of Oceania Odonata of New Zealand Taxa named by William Elford Leach