Vagrant Emperor (Anax ephippiger)

• English name: Vagrant Emperor
• German name: Schabracken-Königslibelle
• French name: Anax porte-selle
• Dutch name: Zadellibel
• Swedish name: Brun kejsartrollslända
• Norwegian name: Trekkøyenstikker
• Finnish name: Kulku-ukonkorento
• Danish name: Brun kejserguldsmed
• Italian name: Imperatore migrante
• Czech name: šídlo hnědé
• Slovenian name: Afriški minljivec
• Bulgarian name: Прелетен пъстролет

Vagrant Emperor
(Anax ephippiger)

Not present

Present before 1990

Present after 1990

Present before and after 1990

Present after 2015

Map data based on J.-P. Boudot & V. J. Kalkman (eds.),
Atlas of the European Dragonflies and Damselflies

General		➤ a large species which regularly visits the Mediterranean area and occasionally ventures further up north
Classification		• suborder: Anisoptera (dragonflies); family: Aeshnidae
Conservation status		• IUCN Red List Europe: Least Concern
Scientific name		• Anax ephippiger (Burmeister, 1839)
Name genus		• Anax: from Grk. ἄναξ = master, ruler, king
Name species		• ephippiger: from Grk. ἐφίππιον = (pad) saddle +; Lat. -ger, -gera, -gerum = -bearing ⇒ for the (light-blue) saddle on S2
Distribution		• click or tap the Map button above
Habitat		• shallow, warm and often temporary pools and ponds
Dimensions		• typical body length: 61-70 mm; hindwing: 43-48 mm
Notes		• the female oviposits in tandem, contact-guarded by the male
		• seldom manages to establish viable long-term populations in Europe
		• aeshnids are 'fliers': they spend a lot of time on the wing and seldom hang up for a rest
		• also known as Hemianax ephippiger
Both sexes	Head	➤ the eyes are brown
		• the top of the frons bears three dark bars: in addition to the usual black bars at the top and bottom, there is a third, chocolate-brown bar
	Thorax	• the thorax is beige-brown, without an antehumeral stripe
	Abdomen	• the abdomen is beige-brown, with a thick dark mid-dorsal line
		• in immature animals the saddle on S2 is usually pale violet
Male	Abdomen	➤ in mature males a sky-blue saddle covers the top (but not the sides) of S2
		• the upper appendages are tapered and pointed
Female	Abdomen	• the saddle on S2 is pale violet or may be absent altogether
		• the appendages are rounded and pointed
Photographs		• nearly all of our photos below were made in the south of Italy
		• the photos we made in Central Italy (Emilia-Romagna) show immature animals at a site where a small population successfully reproduced from around 2006-2009