Welcome to Odonata Central

Although primarily focused on the Western Hemisphere, Odonata Central works worldwide (without vetting) and is based on a worldwide taxonomy of Odonates. However, the taxonomy we have been using outside the Western Hemisphere had become very dated and desperately in need of an upgrade.

About a year ago, Odonata Central started hosting the World Odonata List (accesed from OC main menu: Taxonomy/World Odonata List) which is a constantly updated, very current list of the world’s Odonata. We recently completed a massive update of the taxonomic list used in Odonata Central so it now matches the World Odonata List (as of Nov 2023).

North American users should see almost no changes due to this upgrade. Central and South American users will see minor changes, but if you have records from other continents in Odonata Central, you may want to review them to see if they are categorized correctly. Note that common names are still only available for the Western Hemisphere. Please let us know if you find any errors.

We hope to perform these updates regularly in the future to keep the Odonata Central taxonomic list current.

Odonata Central is place where you can keep track of all your observations, photos and specimens and manage all your personal lists, all while contributing to citizen science. There is an extensive database of odonate observations you can explore. There are many map types and many ways to view and filter data. Explore species lists for any location with early and late flight dates. Download any data set to a spreadsheet for further analysis. iNaturalist sightings are now included on maps and you can import observations directly from iNaturalist.

Help resources include the FAQ, a step-by-step User Guide and Video Tutorials.

The 2024 DSA Annual Meeting will be held in Marietta, Ohio, 28–30 June, organized by Dave McShaffery and colleagues. See the DSA website for more details as they become avialable DSA Website.

Phone App

The Odonata Central phone app allows you to easily enter complete checklists into Odonata Central from your phone. Available for both IOS and Android and supporting English, Spanish, Portuguese and French. Search for it in either the Apple or Google Store.

Use the Add Photos button on the website to easily add photos to checklists created in the field with the app.

Watch a 10 minute instructional video: Introduction to the Odonata Central Phone App

Due to the power of Google Translate, Odonata Central can now be viewed in 108 languages. Select "Translate" from the top menu to select your language of choice.