SURVEY OF ODONATE FAUNA (INSECTA: ODONATA) IN A STRETCH OF THE MARACAJU HILLS, STATE OF MATO GROSS DO SUL, BRAZIL

The scarcity of studies on fauna inventories, especially those addressing insects, is a large problem in many regions of Brazil. To contribute to taxonomic knowledge and broaden the distribution of the order Odonata, we present a survey of odonate fauna of the Maracaju Hills in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Ten samplings were performed between September 2013 and April 2015, totaling 38 h of active searches. A total of 386 individuals belonging to five families, 21 genera and 37 species were collected. Eleven species belonged to the suborder Zygoptera and 26 belonged to the suborder Anisoptera. The family Libellulidae was the richest and most abundant (25 species; 285 individuals), followed by Coenagrionidae (nine spp.; 81 individuals). Lestidae, Gomphidae and Calopterygidae were each represented by a single species and totaled little more than 5% of the overall sample. Among the genera, Erythrodiplax stood out in terms of richness (eight spp.), followed by Erythemis (three spp.). The most abundant species were Erythrodiplax paraguayensis (N = 75), Erythrodiplax famula (n = 50), Ischnura fluviatilis (N = 48) and Micrathyria spuria (N = 45). The sampling effort represented by the species accumulation curve indicated that the richness of Odonata is close to actual richness, since the curve approached the asymptotic one. Aphylla molossus, Erythemis mithroides and Oxyagrion basale constitutes new records for the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, raising the richness of the state to 212 species.