The lunar damselfly, which is threatened with extinction, is the “Dragonfly of the Year” for 2024. In recent years, the population of this damselfly in Germany has fallen drastically, as the Federation for the Environment and Nature Conservation (BUND) announced on Friday.
The highly endangered dragonfly species is in acute danger of extinction, particularly due to the effects of climate change. The choice of the moon azure maiden should now draw attention to this.
According to BUND, the blue-black males and the mostly green-black females are characterized by the green underside of their eyes. The name comes from a crescent-shaped marking on the second abdominal segment of the male. According to BUND, the lunar azure damsel occurs in moors and shallow, nutrient-poor waters with pronounced aquatic vegetation – especially in the northern German lowlands. In southern Germany, however, the damselfly hardly exists anymore.
The reason for this is the significantly reduced habitats: severe droughts, less oxygen in the water due to higher temperatures as well as nutrients and pollutants from the atmosphere or through intensive agricultural use make life difficult for the lunar azure damsel.
