Documentation of Diurnal and Nocturnal Migratory Activity of the Dragonfly Anax junius (Odonata: Aeshnidae) on Sapelo Island, Georgia, USA

Here we report an incidental observation of migration of the dragonfly Anax junius (Common Green Darner) on Sapelo Island, GA, while conducting field work on 6-7 October 2023. Hundreds of dragonflies were observed moving in a western direction away from the Atlantic Ocean during daylight hours. That evening, similar to 35 individuals landed on a white sheet that was amplified using a mercury vapor lamp, suggesting that they were still active after sunset. This incident occurred simultaneously with a large southeasterly cold front that blew through that weekend. We suspect that the dragonflies were headed south and attempting to course-correct at ground level, after being blown out to sea at a higher altitude. Backwards-trajectory analyses of the air mass suggest that these insects could have flown hundreds of kilometers within a 24-hr period. To our knowledge, this is the first published record of dragonfly migration on Sapelo Island, GA, and possibly the first evidence of nocturnal migratory activity in this species.