RARE VENEZUELAN DRAGONFLIES (ODONATA) EVALUATED FOR THEIR POSSIBLE INCLUSION IN THE NATIONAL RED DATA BOOK

This paper is dedicated to Philip S. Corbet on the occasion of his 70th birthday. Abstract Of the 480 species and subspecies listed from Venezuela up to December 1996, 113 are “rare”, i.e. with three or less individual records, or are known from three or less localities. Thirty-eight of them are distributed north and northwest of the Orinoco where 90% of the human population lives and, hence, negative impact on the ecosystems is more evident. The status of conservation of these species was assessed by applying the criteria published by the World Conservation Union (IUCN), in 1994. Sixteen species and subspecies are proposed for inclusion in the Venezuelan Red Data Book, viz. four Polythoridae, four Megapodagrionidae, one Lestidae, one Pseudostigmatidae, four Gomphidae, one Aeshnidae and one Libellulidae. Of the evaluated taxa, one genus and seven species are Venezuelan endemics. Forest fires, deforestation, pollution, water catchment constructions and human invasion of protected areas are some of the main...