A review of the taxonomy of African Odonata - finding ways to better identification and biogeographic insight

The taxonomy of the approximately 850 species of sub-Saharan African Odonata is relativelywell-known, probably due to the impoverished nature of the fauna as compared to that of othertropical regions. The need for revisions, study of higher classification, comprehension of (oftenclinal, environmentally induced) variability and knowledge of larvae, phylogeny and biogeogra-phy are stressed. Taxonomic priorities are discussed for each family. Supportive activities includethe production of identification manuals for a broader public, the accumulation of supplemen-tary material and the conservation of existing collections. A list of genera with estimated num-bers of species, taxonomic status and references is provided, as well as a list of important regionalworks.

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