Thursday, 16 February 2012
A to Z of Dragonflies and Damselflies
Title |
Primary Image | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Azure Damselfly |
 |
|
| Azure Hawker |
Both sexes have azure blue spots on each abdominal segment and the thorax also has azure markings. The markings on the male are brighter and more... |
|
| Banded Darter |
A small darter with black legs and broad hind wings. Both sexes have a brown band across each wing just inside the pale yellow to red pterostigma... |
|
| Banded Demoiselle |
 |
Only two species of damselfly in Britain have obviously coloured wings. They both belong to the genus Calopteryx. In this species the wings of the... |
| Beautiful Demoiselle |
 |
Only two species of damselfly in Britain have obviously coloured wings. They both belong to the genus Calopteryx. In this species the... |
| Black Darter |
 |
This small heathland and moorland species is the only UK black dragonfly (males). The legs are entirely black. There is a constriction of the abdomen... |
| Black-tailed Skimmer |
 |
Females and immatures are pale, yellowish brown with tho bold lines running along the length of the abdomen. The wings have a yellow costa and a very... |
| Blue-tailed Damselfly |
 |
Mature males always have a blue spot at the "tail" (S8), blue ant-humeral stripes on the thorax and blue eyes. Females vary with at... |
| Brilliant Emerald |
 |
The Brilliant Emerald has apple green eyes and the abdomen and thorax are dark metallic emerald green with a bright bronze sheen. The wings are... |
| Broad-bodied Chaser |
 |
The very broad, flattened abdomen is characteristic making the insect appear "fat". Both sexes have pale blue, thin ante-humeral stripes... |
| Brown Hawker |
 |
A large Hawker with obvious golden brown wings. Both sexes have strong yellow stripes on the sides of the thorax and no ante-humeral stripes. The... |
| Club-tailed Dragonfly |
 |
The Club-tailed Dragonfly is a medium sized species with a distinctively club-shaped abdomen as suggested by its common name. Females and teneral... |
| Common Blue Damselfly |
 |
In many ways this could be considered to be the most typical British damselfly. It shares its blue and black colouration with several other... |
| Common Darter |
 |
|
| Common Hawker |
 |
This Hawker has paired spots on each abdominal segment, two broad stripes on the sides of the thorax and the costa is yellow in both sexes. The... |
| Dainty Damselfly |
Both sexes appear yellowish when viewed from the underside. The pale brown pterostigma is longer than in other Coenagrion species. In the male, S2... |
|
| Downy Emerald |
 |
The Downy Emerald is one of three Emerald dragonflies found in Britain. It is a metallic green dragonfly with a copper sheen and noticeable bright... |
| Emerald Damselfly |
 |
This damselfly is metallic green. The male develops a blue pruinescence on segments 1, 2, 9 and 10 as it matures. The female is thicker bodied... |
| Emperor |
 |
Length: 78mmBritain's bulkiest Dragonfly. Its bright colours and active habit make it very obvious when hunting over medium to large water bodies... |
| Four-spotted Chaser |
 |
Both sexes have a brown ground colour becoming darker over the head and almost orange on the sides of the thorax. The posterior half of the... |
| Golden-ringed Dragonfly |
 |
A striking, black and insect with yellow rings along the length of the abdomen. The female is the UKs longest dragonfly because of her long... |
| Green Darner |
This large Hawker is one of the commonest in North America but in 1998, after hurricane conditions in the USA, it was recorded from the Scilly... |
|
| Hairy Dragonfly |
 |
The UK's smallest Hawker, emerging before other Hawkers in May. It has a distinctly hairy thorax (see photos), oval spots on each abdominal... |
| Keeled Skimmer |
 |
Length: 40-44mmThe abdomen appears quite slim and has a pronounced dorsal keel. The wings have a straw yellow costa and yellow or brown... |
| Large Red Damselfly |
 |
Length: 36mm A large, active, deep red damselfly with black legs and a bronze-black top to the thorax which has broad red or yellow stripes... |
| Lesser Emperor |
 |
Length: 71mmThis relative of the much more common Emperor Dragonfly is smaller and duller in colour but the bright blue saddle at S2 is very... |
| Migrant Hawker |
 |
A small Hawker, not aggressive towards other individuals and occasionally seen in large feeding swarms. It flies late into the autumn and is... |
| Norfolk Damselfly |
At first glance, both sexes resemble Blue-tailed Damselfly rather than other Coenagrion species. The pale brown pterostigma is longer than in... |
|
| Norfolk Hawker |
 |
The Norfolk Hawker is one of 2 brown hawker dragonflies found in Britain. It has clear untinted wings, green eyes and a yellow triangular mark on... |
| Northern Damselfly |
 |
This species is found in only a few small lochans in Scotland. In the male, S2 has a rather variable, spear-head shaped spot linked rather like... |
| Northern Emerald |
 |
The Northern Emerald has bluish-green (sometimes yellowish) eyes. The wings are faintly suffused with saffron. The thorax are metallic bronze... |
| Orange-spotted Emerald |
The Orange-spotted Emerald has bright green eyes and yellow or orange, elongated spots along the length of the dorsal surface of the abdomen. The... |
|
| Red-eyed Damselfly |
 |
A robust looking damselfly with a dark greyish abdomen and a blue tail in the male. The eyes of the male are deep red and the thorax in both sexes... |
| Red-veined Darter |
 |
The bright red males and clear yellow-brown females are attractive. The eyes are brown above and blue below and the wing bases are yellow. The... |
| Ruddy Darter |
 |
This species is smaller than the Common Darter. The legs are entirely black. An intense orange colouration can be seen only at the very base of... |
| Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly |
 |
The Scarce Blue-tailed is one of a number of small British Damselflies. Typically Males have a black abdomen with green or blue sides and a small... |
| Scarce Chaser |
 |
The mature male Scarce Chaser possesses pale blue pruinescence on the abdomen. Its eyes are blue. However, prior to maturation the male and female... |
| Scarce Emerald Damselfly |
 |
The Scarce Emerald Damselfly is a medium sized metallic green insect that usually rests with its wings half open. Adult males have blue eyes and... |
| Scarlet Darter |
 |
This darter has a flattened abdomen appearing rather broad compared to other UK darters. The male is vividly bright scarlet and unmistakeable. The... |
| Small Red Damselfly |
 |
One of our smallest damselflies, this is one of only two red damselfly species in the UK. The male has an all red abdomen. The female exists in... |
| Small Red-eyed Damselfly |
 |
|
| Southern Damselfly |
 |
The Southern Damselfly, Coenagrion mercuriale, is one of five members of the genus Coenagrion currently to be found in the British Isles (two... |
| Southern Emerald Damselfly |
This damselfly is metallic green, becoming bronze as it ages. It has relatively broad, pale ante-humeral stripes on the thorax. At rest, the... |
|
| Southern Hawker |
 |
A large, inquisitive Hawker usually seen individually. It may fly quite close to investigate observers. The spots on segments S8-10 are joined,... |
| Vagrant Darter |
Like the Common Darter but the mature male is a deeper red. The sides of the thorax are not so well marked. In hand examination of the frons is... |
|
| Variable Damselfly |
 |
In the male, the ante-humeral stripes are usually broken, like two exclamation marks. S2 has a "wine-goblet" shaped marked, usually... |
| White-faced Darter |
 |
Length: 33-37mmThe White-faced Darter is a small dark dragonfly, with a pale creamy white frons. The wings have small black patches at the base... |
| White-legged Damselfly |
 |
Adult males have obvious expanded, white legs which are used in a fluttering display flight in front of females. The male is pale blue with paired... |