Data from: Attraction to water and polarization in dragonflies and damselflies along a light pollution gradient

This study tested whether artificial polarization imposes a selective pressure that modifies odonate behavior and sensitivity to water and polarization signals. We predicted that odonate species exposed to higher light pollution would show a reduced preference for artificial polarizing traps and an increased preference for natural water bodies. We found interspecific differences in habitat choice criteria with some species favoring polarization above water and vice versa, suggesting that some species avoid ecological traps. We found weak differences in behavior frequency between polarization exposure categories, suggesting either a weak selective pressure imposed by this light pollution, the possibility that selection has already occurred in some species, leading to avoidance behavior, or the existence of alternative physiological-behavioral strategies that prioritize other habitat queues. About database: The first sheet has odonate reproductive behavior frequencies categorized by polarization exposure (null, light, moderate, high), odonate species, suborder, individual, and treatment (Greenpol=high polarization no water, Waterpol=high polarization with water, Metalwater=low polarization with water, Metal=low polarization no water). Data was collected at the end of the rainy season in 2023 in the municipality of La Huerta, Jalisco, México. The reproductive behaviors taken into account were perching, patrolling, and aggression. All behaviors were recorded for male individuals. The second sheet has the recorded temperatures for each study treatment along with the soil in the sun, shade, and the water body temperature at the beginning, middle, and end of behavior observations each time the multiple-choice experiment was carried out.