Family Protoneuridae Genus Prodasineura

Most Prodasineura species are relatively easily observed and photographed. They commonly perch in sunlit patches in their forest habitats and generally occur at high densities. Nevertheless it is certain that extensive tracts of suitable habitat remain unexplored and new species are to be expected. Moreover in some species the degree of variation is not well understood, and more material is required to clarify the status of certain forms.

A finely built, inconspicuous species found in sluggish forest streams in the north, west and east of the island. It is local, but common where it occurs.
Males are recognized by the fine red stripe running almost the length of the abdomen.
Females are much darker.
A very similar species which flies in the same habitat in west Borneo and Brunei is Prodasineura haematosoma, in which the seventh abdominal segment is black above (red in hyperythra) and the labrum is mostly black (white in hyperythra). It is generally much less common than Prodasineura hyperythra.

A distinctive species recognized at once by the brilliant orange on the upper side of the male thorax. The female has quite reduced coloration as may be seen from the pair in tandem . It occurs in west and north-west Borneo and is locally common around rivulets in fresh-water swamp forest. In the east and south-east of the island is found the very similar species Prodasineura flammula in which the thorax is of a deeper colour.

Prodasineura verticalis

Of the many species of Prodasineura, one of the most widely encountered is the strongly orange-striped Prodasineura verticalis . Similar marking occurs in the female but is paler and somewhat reduced. It is found in a wide range of lowland forest but is most common on small to medium-sized streams in mixed dipterocarp forest. It often perches on riverside vegetation, but when on the wing it can be extremely inconspicuous.

Females generally oviposit alone, typically in root masses in the riverbanks . Several other species have predominantly linear orange markings on the thorax including Prodasineura hosei and Prodasineura peramoena both recorded from peat swamp and dipterocarp forest streams in west and north-west Borneo.

Prodasineura collaris is the most frequently encountered blue species. In the male, the antehumeral bands on the upper side of the synthorax are broad at the front. In the female they are reduced to a small spot. It is found throughout the lowlands in all types of forested swamp habitat, including peat swamp forest. The species is often abundant and is widely distributed elsewhere in south-east Asia.

Prodasineura interrupta is found in sluggish streams and swamp forest in the west, south and south-east. The male is easily distinguished from Prodasineura collaris by the different shape of its blue antehumeral bands.

Other blue species, which all differ in the thoracic markings in the male, include Prodasineura abbreviate and Prodasineura quadristigma, both from the south-east and Prodasineura notostigma, from the west and north-west.

A final species, Prodasineura tenebricosa is found in swamp forest and on the banks of broad rivers in the south-west. It is a very dark, lightly built species, entirely unmarked above, paler beneath.

Out of the global 10 families of damselflies, the following 6 families are found in Borneo Island :

Damselfly head include :
1- compound eyes,
2- ocelli,
3- antennae,
4- mouth structures

Dragonflies of Borneo
"With 275 named species so far recorded in Borneo, the island has one of the richest and most exciting dragonfly faunas in the world. More than 40% of species occur nowhere else, making it the most distinctive sub-region of Sundaland." A Guide to the Dragonflies of Borneo by Albert G. Orr

GO FURTHER

FLORA

Fig trees of Sabah

Borneo has 150 species of wild fig trees. Most of them are found in forests of Sabah.

FISHERIES

Tiger Prawn Farms in Tawau

Prawn farming is a main commercial activities in Tawau. Spawners from Tawau are graded the best in Malaysia. For decades, Tawau has been exporting high-grade tiger prawns to several countries such as Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Singapore, Egypt and Australia.

A Guide to Common Spiders in BORNEO ISLAND