Rare Species in Minnesota
Zigzag Darner - Aeshna sitchensis - thorax
Many regions of Minnesota are so under-surveyed that every species could be on this list, but in light of what you have found recently in the field and what we have found in older specimens in museum collections we have come up with a list of “Minnesota’s Most Wanted” species. These species are known from a single specimen in Minnesota or they are not being reported from areas that we expect to find them or they occur in small populations in remote regions or there is an historical record, but nothing has been reported in modern times.
Red Damsel – Amphiagrion saucium
Prairie Bluet – Coenagrion angulatum
River Bluet – Enallagma anna
Double-striped Bluet – Enallagma basidens
Zigzag Darner – Aeshna sitchensis
Subarctic Darner – Aeshna subarctica
Ocellated Darner – Boyeria grafiana
Cyrano Darner – Nasiaeschna pentacantha
Spatterdock Darner – Rhionaeschna mutata
Blue-Eyed Darner – Rhionaeschna multicolor
Lilypad Clubtail - Arigomphus furcifer
Zebra Clubtail – Stylurus scudderi
Least Clubtail – Stylogomphus albistylus
Skillet Clubtail – Gomphus ventricosus
Splendid Clubtail – Gomphus lineatifrons
Various Snaketails – Ophiogomphus sp.
Arrowhead Spiketail – Cordulegaster obliqua
Stygian Shadowdragon – Neurocordulia yamaskenensis
Smoky Shadowdragon – Neurocordulia molesta
Ebony Boghaunter – Wiliamsoni fletcheri
All Somatochlora – Somatochlora sp.
Red-veined Meadowhawk – Sympetrum madidum
Blue-faced Meadowhawk – Sympetrum ambiguum
Elfin Skimmer – Nanothemis bella
Slaty Skimmer – Libellula incesta
Red Saddlebags – Tramea onusta
Arrowhead Spiketail – Cordulegaster obliqua
Forcipate Emerald – Somatochlora forcipata - female
Ski-tailed Emerald – Somatochlora elongata
DNR Species of Concern
The Minnesota DNR has listed several species as “Species of Special Concern”. The definition of this status is: ” Special Concern (extremely uncommon in Minnesota, or with unique or highly specific habitat requirements and deserving careful monitoring of its status, or on the periphery of its range, or once threatened or endangered but now have increasing or protected, stable populations; not protected under MESA; location records maintained by DNR)”. View the DNR Species of Concern List