Selysiothemis nigra (Vander L.) recorded from La Mancha (Cuidad Real/Albacete), Spain (Anisoptera: Libellulidae)

On 2 and 3 August 1985, I visited the "Lagunas de Ruidera”, a complex of lakes some 40 km E of Cuidad Real and 80 km W of Albacete, divided by the frontier between the two provinces of the same name. The Ruidera complex is situated in the southern part of the vast and very dry Mancha region. The lakes are permanent, in contrast to the (few) important waterbodies in the region (nature reserve "Tablas de Damiel” and some other shallow "Lagunas” in the NE), which dry out completely in late summer. Consequently, Ruidera represents an interesting dragonfly habitat within the Mancha region. The lakes, belonging to the source of the Alto Guadiana river, extend over a length of 15 km (± 800 m alt.), and communicate with each other by little waterfalls and small streamlets. The eastern lakes are shallow and mainly covered with reeds ( Phragmites australis), in the West they are deeper and possess a much smaller vegetation border (1-4 m), often partly destroyed due to recreation. The water is very clear, calcareous and was at the moment of my visit 23-25° C.