The Swift Dragonflies of the Northern Hemisphere
Some common dragonfly species of the Northern Hemisphere.
A dragonfly falls under the order Odonata. This insect can easily be distinguish by its large complex eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings and a drawn out body. Dragonflies main habitat are lakes, ponds, streams and other wetlands. They usually feed on small insects such as: mosquitoes, bees, flies, ants and butterfly. Adult dragonflies held their wings away from, and perpendicular to, the body when at rest.
Female dragonfly lays eggs in or near water and 90% of its life span is spent beneath the water’s surface in the “nymph” form. There are at least 5500 known species of dragonfly in the world. Below are some of the common species of Northern Hemisphere dragonfly.
The Emperor dragonfly (Anax imperator) is a common British dragonfly that owns the largest wingspan. Its wingspan can grow up to 10.5 cm while its body length can reach up to 8 cm. Emperor dragonfly is a strong insect and will always defend its territory. Most likely one can see Emperor dragonfly hovering over water bodies that include rivers, big ponds and canals looking for a meal. Male appears a striking turquoise blue, with green thorax and black stripes decorate its abdomen while the female has a lighter green shades.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/e3000/2597990056/
The Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) is a popular species that finds its habitat at lakes and ponds across the United States. Female Widow Skimmer shows large dark wing spots along its lower wings and its wing tips are mark with smaller dark spots while males have white spots on its abdomen and white wing spots between the dark wing spots.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfraven/2779384542/
The Migrant Hawker (Aeshna mixta) is a large species that can measure up to 60mm long.They can be found in North Africa, Southern and Central Europe to the Baltic region. Male Migrant Hawker’s elongated body can have a turquoise blue, green and brown coloring. The species prefers still or slow-flowing water.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/strangeones/1260999486/
The Norfolk Hawker (Aeshna isosceles) is an extremely rare species of dragonfly in Great Britain. A distinct identification mark of this dragonfly is its yellow triangular mark on the second abdominal segment. Another familiar mark is its green eyes and translucent wings. A common Mediterranean species, Norfolk Hawkers are found in North Africa Southern Europe. Its habitat must include unspoiled grazing marsh dikes, clean fresh water and plenty of aquatic plants.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rictor-and-david/2628418169
The Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) is a common species found in Europe and can live in different types of water bodies. All Common Darter’s legs have a cream or yellow stripe on a black background.
Females have light yellow thorax and abdomen and turns to a dark chocolate brown as it grow older. Males exhibit a reddish color as they mature.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/strangeones/1260984826/
The Great Pondhawk (Erythemis vesiculosa) is found at still water habitats along the southern border areas and in the central parts of the United States. Males and females Great Pondhawk look similar but males own a much darker markings on the abdomen between the green markings. Also, males have bright lime green thorax.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/leppyone/1316965946/’
The Common Whitetail (Libellula lydia) is a common species across much of North America having an unusual appearance. The males sport a checkered look having white bodies and translucent wings having brownish-black bands. Females have a brown body and a different pattern of wing spots. Whitetail females can be distinguished by their smaller size, shorter bodies, and white zigzag abdominal stripes;
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3003/2805062492_1a2553ed42.jpg?v=1219892509
The Banded Pennant (Celithemis fasciata) is a common species found mostly in North America. They own an extensive, sharply defined black markings on its wings. Banded Pennant is a small dragonfly that may grow up to 1 1/2 inches. Its habitat include ponds, lakes and sand bottom lakes ditches.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vickisnature/2775438014/
The Green Darner (Anax junius) is one of the largest dragonflies, with males growing up to 75 millimeters and female up to 68 millimeters in length. Thet distict identification marks are its green thorax region and a reddish-brown coloration ventrally in the abdominal region. Both male and female exhibit light blue abdominal coloration dorsally. Green Darner are mostly found in the northernmost part of the United States (Alaska) and south to Panama. This species prefers still or very slow-moving fresh water, with lots of aquatic vegetation, and can only flourish where there are no predatory fish.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/amylovesyah/2578372891/
The Broad-bodied Chaser, (Libellula depressa) is mainly found in Wales and Southern England that could have a 70 millimeters wing-span. They live in near still-water lakes and ponds hunting for small insects.
The female has a brown abdomen with two yellow stripes. The male has a pale blue abdomen. Both the male and female broad-bodied chasers have dark brown, triangular patches at the base of all four wings.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/11741671@N03/3034815933/
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44 Responses to “The Swift Dragonflies of the Northern Hemisphere”
On March 2, 2009 at 9:42 am
Incredibly informative and beautifully illustrated. I remember seeing my first dragonflies here in Romania and being amazed – I guess they must have been the Migrant Hawker as they were huge and turquoise.
On March 2, 2009 at 11:48 am
They are a delight to behold. I used to make fun at them, by catching them up. It was a long time ago in a remote village of my boyhood.
On March 2, 2009 at 11:50 am
I love the variety in your articles, this is wonderful and beautiful pictures, I loved it!
On March 2, 2009 at 11:54 am
dragonfly 101.. great informative article papaleng..
On March 2, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Lovely pictures, good article.
On March 2, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Interesting article with wonderful pictures
On March 2, 2009 at 12:28 pm
excellent article, I love dragonflies, and things with wings,
On March 2, 2009 at 12:57 pm
A beautiful and informative article
On March 2, 2009 at 1:08 pm
I really enjoyed reading that article and the photos are stunning. Well done.
Christine
On March 2, 2009 at 1:13 pm
I love the photos, and the information is interesting.
On March 2, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Papaleng,this is really interesting
On March 2, 2009 at 2:28 pm
beuatiful photos, great article!
On March 2, 2009 at 2:48 pm
I like the photos and the well researched article.
Monica
On March 2, 2009 at 2:50 pm
Teaching dragonfly article and wonderful pictures,thank you.
On March 2, 2009 at 3:13 pm
Amazing I never knew this much about Dragonfly especially the color differencees between males and females
On March 2, 2009 at 3:22 pm
As a child, my favorite past time was catching dragonflies. This article brings back happy memories of my childhood. Thanks.
On March 2, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Nice colours!
On March 2, 2009 at 4:20 pm
Great article , loved the photos, thank you
On March 2, 2009 at 4:25 pm
well researched post, thnks for the share
On March 2, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Great photos and so well written.
On March 2, 2009 at 5:25 pm
wow, so many different kinds. Great article, informative and interesting. Great pictures!
On March 2, 2009 at 6:29 pm
that was great papaleng! very informative and i like those “tutubi’ there ha. hehehehe
very Well presented.
On March 2, 2009 at 6:29 pm
Wow what vivid pics. Amazing article.
Also, thank you for commenting on “Ever wanted to Pelt Someone…” Feedback is always nice.
On March 2, 2009 at 6:44 pm
I have always been fascinated by these creatures.
On March 2, 2009 at 7:42 pm
I guess they don’t have the “tutubing aspili”. You know? The smallest, just like a pin. We were naughty kids back then, we used to hunt these types. They don’t bite
On March 2, 2009 at 8:03 pm
Dragonflies are beautiful. I see them when I go walking by the creeks.
On March 2, 2009 at 8:43 pm
Beautiful photos, beautiful creatures, great article
On March 2, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Wonderful article! I’ve always thought dragonflies were so cool. Beautiful pics too!
On March 2, 2009 at 10:47 pm
Those dragonflies are beautiful.
On March 2, 2009 at 11:59 pm
Fascinating article – splendid pictures!
Blessings.
Sincerely,
-Liane Schmidt.
On March 3, 2009 at 12:01 am
a day with the butterflies!
nice article, nice pictures…
On March 3, 2009 at 1:59 am
Very informative. You had to have put in a lot of time researching this.
On March 3, 2009 at 3:53 am
An interesting piece. Wonderful pictures too.
On March 3, 2009 at 1:59 pm
ohh.. i miss dragonflies. i used to catch them a lot when i was a kid. i’d catch them by hand. what a lovely article papaleng.
On March 3, 2009 at 2:23 pm
This was really interesting to me. I love dragonflies, I see alot of blue ones by the river that I love near in the summer and spring
On March 3, 2009 at 4:12 pm
good one.
On March 4, 2009 at 4:47 am
Very informative! I like to see dragonflies. I and my daughter usually go to a butterfly and dragonfly museum during weekends. Very interesting subjects!
On March 4, 2009 at 5:34 am
Great article a must read and well done.
On March 4, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Fascinating read, and excellent photos!
On March 4, 2009 at 3:06 pm
Well done, interesting article. Loved the pictures.
On March 4, 2009 at 6:57 pm
That was amazing article…., interesting and cool…
On March 5, 2009 at 1:13 am
If there’s any insect worth studying, it’s the dragonfly. The way the move, their different color patters – they’re just beautiful.
On March 8, 2009 at 8:38 am
Beautiful insects! Well-written article as usual. Stunning pics as well.
On October 26, 2009 at 11:27 am
The dragonfly photo identified above as a green darner, Anax junius, is actually an eastern pondhawk, Erythemis simplicicollis.
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