# Emperor dragonfly (*Anax imperator*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/emperor-dragonfly  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The emperor dragonfly (Anax imperator) is a species in the family Aeshnidae, order Odonata. It has been recorded in 100 countries, most often in France, United Kingdom and Switzerland. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Recorded in | 100 countries |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Arthropoda
- class: Insecta
- order: Odonata
- family: Aeshnidae
- genus: Anax
- species: *Anax imperator* Leach, 1815

Synonyms: *Aeschna azurea*, *Aeschna dorsalis*, *Aeschna formosa*, *Aeschna lunata*, *Aeshna formosa*, *Anax formosa*, *Anax mauricianus*, *Anax mauritianus*

## Where it has been recorded

Countries with openly licensed sighting records on GBIF (records in brackets). Recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

France (126227), United Kingdom (114022), Switzerland (77200), Germany (11604), Sweden (6735), Netherlands (2560), Belgium (2328), Ireland (1690), Austria (1091), Spain (1033), Greece (716), Italy (626), Ukraine (609), Luxembourg (530), Denmark (513), Türkiye (413), Portugal (372), Bulgaria (313), Oman (215), South Africa (209), Hungary (191), Norway (182), Isle of Man (144), Romania (104), Russia (91), Iran (83), Morocco (75), Estonia (72), Réunion (72), Georgia (71), Yemen (69), Senegal (66), Liechtenstein (54), Finland (50), United Arab Emirates (44), Syria (41), Israel (36), Poland (33), Malta (31), Czechia (24), Sudan (22), Armenia (19), Botswana (19), Namibia (18), Azerbaijan (17), Egypt (17), Cyprus (16), Croatia (15), Tajikistan (15), Jordan (14), Kenya (13), Mauritius (13), Belarus (12), Mozambique (11), Equatorial Guinea (10), Lithuania (9), Saudi Arabia (9), Angola (8), Algeria (8), Guernsey (8), and 40 more

## Common questions

### Where does the emperor dragonfly live?

The emperor dragonfly has openly licensed sighting records from 100 countries on GBIF. The most records come from France, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany and Sweden. These are recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

### Is the emperor dragonfly endangered?

The emperor dragonfly is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

### What kind of animal is the emperor dragonfly?

The emperor dragonfly (Anax imperator) belongs to the family Aeshnidae in the order Odonata.

## Sources

- [GBIF Backbone Taxonomy](https://www.gbif.org/dataset/d7dddbf4-2cf0-4f39-9b2a-bb099caae36c), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF Secretariat. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/), CC0 1.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, the free knowledge base.
- [GBIF occurrence aggregates (CC0 and CC BY records only)](https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF.org occurrence search, country facet counts restricted to CC0 1.0 and CC BY 4.0 records.
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/), Per file, live API 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Licence and creator recorded per file.
- [English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/), CC BY-SA 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Cite as: Emperor dragonfly (Anax imperator). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/emperor-dragonfly