About Orthetrum japonicum (Uhler, 1858)
Orthetrum japonicum (Uhler, 1858) is a species of libellulid dragonfly. Its known distribution changed substantially in 2012, when its former subspecies Orthetrum japonicum internum was split off into a separate species. Before this split, when O. internum was still included in Orthetrum japonicum, the species was thought to range across Japan, Taiwan, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, and parts of Korea, China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and India. Under this updated species classification, Orthetrum japonicum is now recognized as endemic to Japan, matching the endemic status of its original nominate subspecies O. j. japonicum. Within Japan, this dragonfly occurs from the northern island of Hokkaido, through Honshu, and south to Kyushu. The southernmost edge of its range is Tanegashima, part of the Osumi Islands located near Kyushu.
