Cover photo by Niall Perrins.
Find the Black Emperor in the FBIS database (Freshwater Biodiversity Information System) here.
Family Aeshnidae
Identification
Near Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal
Photo by Ryan Tippett
Very large to huge size
Length up to 116mm; Wingspan attains 133mm.
The Black Emperor is the largest dragonfly species in Africa. The distinctive green, black and yellow colouration added to its huge size render Anax tristis unmistakable.
The sexes are very similar but females have shorter and broader abdomens. Females also have smoky-coloured wings.
Click here for more details on identification.
Kosi Bay, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu-Natal
Photo by Ryan Tippett
Habitat
The Black Emperor frequents Pans, dams, ponds, and waterholes in savanna and forested areas. It prefers fairly small, open waterbodies, often with minimal vegetation. The Black Emperor is sometimes also found at marshes and rivers.
Bonamanzi Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal
Photo by Ryan Tippett
Behaviour
The Black Emperor is a highly aerial species and is seldom seen perched. It mainly flies at tree-top level but sometimes also low over the water. The Black Emperor patrols a regular route over a waterbody. This flight route often includes a trip to the surrounding treeline before returning to the water at speed. The flight is very fast and powerful. The Black Emperor is fairly inquisitive and will sometimes pass an observer at close range. If disturbed it flies fast, high, and far. Black Emperors rest by hanging vertically from a perch. Preys on large flying insects, including beetles and other dragonfly species.
Near Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal
Photo by Ryan Tippett
The Black Emperor is most active from October to April (see Phenology below).
Status and Conservation
The Black Emperor is a scarce and localised species. It is listed as of Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The Black Emperor is mostly found in undisturbed areas but does make use of suitable man-made dams and waterholes.
Near Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal
Photo by Ryan Tippett
Distribution
The Black Emperor is widely but thinly distributed throughout most of sub-Saharan Africa. It is only absent from the driest regions of north-east Africa and the arid regions of Namibia and South Africa. The Black Emperor is sometimes prone to vagrancy as evidenced in the distribution maps below.
Below is a map showing the distribution of records for Black Emperor in the OdonataMAP database as at February 2020.
Below is a map showing the distribution of records for Black Emperor in the OdonataMAP database as of December 2024.
The next map below is an imputed map, produced by an interpolation algorithm, which attempts to generate a full distribution map from the partial information in the map above. This map will be improved by the submission of records to the OdonataMAP section of the Virtual Museum.
Ultimately, we will produce a series of maps for all the odonata species in the region. The current algorithm is a new algorithm. The objective is mainly to produce “smoothed” maps that could go into a field guide for odonata. This basic version of the algorithm (as mapped above) does not make use of “explanatory variables” (e.g. altitude, terrain roughness, presence of freshwater — we will be producing maps that take these variables into account soon). Currently, it only makes use of the OdonataMAP records for the species being mapped, as well as all the other records of all other species. The basic maps are “optimistic” and will generally show ranges to be larger than what they probably are.
These maps use the data in the OdonataMAP section of the Virtual Museum, and also the database assembled by the previous JRS funded project, which was led by Professor Michael Samways and Dr KD Dijkstra.
Phenology
Carnarvon district, Northern Cape
Photo by Ryan Tippett
Further Resources
The use of photographs by Niall Perrins is acknowledged. All other photographs by Ryan Tippett.
Black Emperor Anax tristis Hagen, 1867
Other common names: Swartkeiser (Afrikaans)
Recommended citation format: Loftie-Eaton M; Navarro R; Tippett RM; Underhill L. 2025. Black Emperor Anax tristis. Biodiversity and Development Institute. Available online at https://thebdi.org/2020/05/18/black-emperor-anax-tristis/
References: Tarboton, M; Tarboton, W. (2019). A Guide to the Dragonflies & Damselflies of South Africa. Struik Nature.
Samways, MJ. (2008). Dragonflies and Damselflies of South Africa. Pensoft
Samways, MJ. (2016). Manual of Freshwater Assessment for South Africa: Dragonfly Biotic Index.Suricata 2. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria
Martens, A; Suhling, F. (2007). Dragonflies and Damselflies of Namibia. Gamsberg Macmillan.
Near Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal
Photo by Ryan Tippett
