''Libellula'' 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 ...

, commonly called skimmers, in the family

Libellulidae The skimmers or perchers and their relatives form the Libellulidae, the largest dragonfly family in the world. It is sometimes considered to contain the Corduliidae as the subfamily Corduliinae and the Macromiidae as the subfamily Macromiinae. E ...

, distributed throughout the

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known large dragonflies, often seen flying over freshwater ponds in summer. Many have showy wing patterns.

Overview

The taxa ''Ladona'' (corporals) and ''Plathemis'' (whitetails) have been considered as synonyms of ''Libellula'',

subgenera In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed betwee ...

, or separate

genera 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 ...

by different authorities. Recent

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

analysis has supported their status as either subgenera or full genera.

Species

List of species.''Libellula''
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Extant species

''Ladona''

''Plathemis''

Fossils

*''

Libellula brodieri ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† The Paleobiology Database
/ref> *''

Libellula calypso ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *''

Libellula doris ''Libellula doris'' is an extinct species of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae The skimmers or perchers and their relatives form the Libellulidae, the largest dragonfly family in the world. It is sometimes con ...

'' † *''

Libellula eusebioi ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *''

Libellula kieseli ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *''

Libellula martini ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *''

Libellula melobasis ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *''

Libellula pannewitziana ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *'' Libellula perse''† *''

Libellula sieboldiana ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''† *'' Libellula thetis''† *'' Libellula thoe''† *''

Libellula ukrainensis ''Libellula'' is a genus of dragonflies, commonly called skimmers, in the family Libellulidae, distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Most species are found in the United States, where they are the best-known la ...

''†

References

External links

* * Libellulidae Anisoptera genera Odonata of Asia Odonata of Europe Odonata of North America Odonata of South America Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Taxa described in 1758 Animal migration {{libellulidae-stub