Protoneuridae is a family of damselflies in the superfamily Coenagrionoidea.[2] The family is found in the Neotropical region from Mexico to Argentina and the Caribbean and currently contain 13 genera and over 100 species..[2]
Description
Members of Protoneuridae are small to medium-sized damselflies with slender bodies and narrow wings.[1][3] Many species have an exceptionally thin abdomen, giving them a delicate appearance.[1] Most inhabit shaded streams and rivers in the Neotropical region.[4]
The larvae are aquatic and occur in flowing waters. Where known, they possess distinctive gills, a feature recognised in early classifications of the group.[1][3] Adults and larvae exhibit a range of structural adaptations associated with stream habitats, although the family’s defining characteristics have been revised substantially following modern phylogenetic studies.[5][6][7]
Taxonomic history
The family traces its origins to the genus Protoneura, established by Sélys in 1853 for a group of slender Neotropical damselflies.[8] In his statistical overview of the Odonata, Selys later placed Protoneura and related genera within his “Legion Protoneura”, one of several informal higher groupings used in his classification of the damselflies. The legion included genera now placed in several modern families, including Protoneuridae, Platycnemididae and Platystictidae.[9]
Jacobson and Bianchi (1905) subsequently formalised Selys’ concept as the subfamily Protoneurinae.[10] Their treatment included both Old World and New World genera and broadly reflected the composition of Selys’ Legion Protoneura. Tillyard (1917) adopted Selys’ legions as subfamilies within Agrionidae and provided a detailed diagnosis of Protoneurinae based on both adult and larval characters.[9] The World Odonata List attributes the family-group name Protoneuridae to Tillyard (1917).[2]
Fraser (1957) recognised Protoneuridae as a distinct family divided into four subfamilies: Protoneurinae, Disparoneurinae, Caconeurinae and Isostictinae.[3] He noted that Protoneurinae comprised exclusively Neotropical genera, whereas the remaining subfamilies were restricted to the Old World, extending from tropical Africa to the Pacific.[3]
Throughout much of the twentieth century, Protoneuridae was recognised as a widespread family of tropical damselflies. However, molecular phylogenetic studies published by Dijkstra and colleagues demonstrated that the traditional family was polyphyletic. As a result, the New World protoneurids were transferred to Coenagrionidae and the Old World protoneurids to Platycnemididae.[5][6]
Subsequent studies recovered a distinct Neotropical lineage corresponding to part of the traditional family. Based on this evidence, Pessacq and colleagues reinstated Protoneuridae in 2025 as a separate family within Coenagrionoidea.[7] Under this restricted circumscription, the family is confined to the Neotropical region and contains only New World genera.[2][7]
Genera
The following genera are currently placed in Protoneuridae:[2]
- Amazoneura Machado, 2004
- Drepanoneura von Ellenrieder & Garrison, 2008
- Epipleoneura Williamson, 1915
- Epipotoneura Williamson, 1915
- Forcepsioneura Lencioni, 1999
- Idioneura Selys, 1860
- Lamproneura De Marmels, 2003
- Neoneura Selys, 1860
- Peristicta Hagen in Selys, 1860
- Phasmoneura Williamson, 1916
- Protoneura Selys in Sagra, 1857
- Psaironeura Williamson, 1915
- Roppaneura Santos, 1966
Etymology
The family name Protoneuridae is derived from the type genus Protoneura, with the standard zoological suffix ‘-idae’ used for animal families.
The generic name Protoneura is formed from the Greek πρῶτος (prôtos, “first” or “primary”) and νεῦρον (neûron, “nerve” or “sinew”), the latter often used in entomology to refer to a wing vein.[11] It likely refers to the reduced and simplified wing venation emphasised in Sélys’ original description of the genus.[8]
References
- ^ a b c d Tillyard, R.J. (1917). The biology of dragonflies (Odonata or Paraneuroptera). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 396 [279]. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.35170.
- ^ a b c d e Paulson, D.; Schorr, M.; Abbott, J.; Bota-Sierra, C.; Deliry, C.; Dijkstra, K.-D.; Lozano, F. “World Odonata List”. OdonataCentral. University of Alabama. Retrieved 13 April 2026.
- ^ a b c d Fraser, F.C. (1957). A reclassification of the order Odonata. Handbook / Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales; 12. Sydney: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. pp. 133 [40].
- ^ Silsby, Jill (2001). Dragonflies of the World. CSIRO Publishing. p. 102. ISBN 0643065121.
- ^ a b Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B.; Bechly, Günter; Bybee, Seth M.; Dow, Rory A.; Dumont, Henri J.; Fleck, Günther; Garrison, Rosser W.; Hämäläinen, Matti; Kalkman, Vincent J.; Karube, Haruki; May, Michael L.; Orr, Albert G.; Paulson, Dennis R.; Rehn, Andrew C.; Theischinger, Günther; Trueman, John W.H.; Van Tol, Jan; von Ellenrieder, Natalia; Ware, Jessica (2013). “The classification and diversity of dragonflies and damselflies (Odonata). In: Zhang, Z.-Q. (Ed.) Animal Biodiversity: An Outline of Higher-level Classification and Survey of Taxonomic Richness (Addenda 2013)”. Zootaxa. 3703 (1): 36–45. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3703.1.9. hdl:10072/61365. ISSN 1175-5334.
- ^ a b Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B.; Kalkman, Vincent J.; Dow, Rory A.; Stokvis, Frank R.; Van Tol, Jan (2014). “Redefining the damselfly families: A comprehensive molecular phylogeny of Zygoptera (Odonata)”. Systematic Entomology. 39 (1): 68–96. doi:10.1111/syen.12035.
- ^ a b c Pessacq, Pablo; Anjos-Santos, Danielle; Cordero-Rivera, Adolfo; Lorenzo-Carballa, M. Olalla (2025). “A reappraisal of the family status of Neotropical Protoneuridae (Odonata: Zygoptera) using morphological and molecular information”. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 203 (3) zlaf012. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaf012.
- ^ a b Selys Longchamps, Edmond de (1857). “Odonates de Cuba”. In Guérin-Méneville, F.E. (ed.). Histoire physique, politique et naturelle de l’île de Cuba. Animaux articulés à pieds articulés (in French). Ramón de la Sagra (ed.). Paris: A. Bertrand. pp. 436–472 [470].
- ^ a b Selys-Longchamps, E. (1871). “Aperçu statistique sur les Névroptères Odonates”. Transactions of the Entomological Society of London (in French). 19: 409-416 [415] – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
- ^ Jacobson, G. G.; Bianchi, V. L. (1905). Orthoptera and Pseudoneuroptera of the Russian Empire and bordering countries [Прямокрылые и ложносетчатокрылые Российской империи и сопредельных стран] (in Russian). St. Petersburg: A.F. Devrien. pp. 952 [726]. ISBN 978-5-4460-2061-4.
{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help) - ^ Brown, Roland Wilbur (1954). Composition of Scientific Words: A Manual of Methods and a Lexicon of Materials for the Practice of Logotechnics. [Washington].