Large red damselfly | |
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Male, Dry Sandford Pit, Oxfordshire | |
Female, form fulvipes Cumnor Hill, Oxford | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Odonata |
Suborder: | Zygoptera |
Family: | Coenagrionidae |
Genus: | Pyrrhosoma |
Species: | P. nymphula |
Binomial name | |
Pyrrhosoma nymphula (Sulzer, 1776) | |
Synonyms | |
List
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The large red damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) is a species of damselflies belonging to the family Coenagrionidae. [2] It is native to the western Palearctic.
This species is a mainly European damselfly, with some populations in Northern Africa and Western Asia. [1] [3]
These damselflies inhabit small ponds, lakes and dikes, and occasionally slow-moving rivers. They tend to avoid fast flowing water. [4]
Pyrrhosoma nymphula can reach a body length of 33–36 millimetres (1.3–1.4 in). [4] These large and robust damselflies show black legs and wing spots in both sexes. [4]
Mature males have red eyes and a black thorax with red shoulder stripes in mature specimen, but yellow stripes in immature. In fact ante-humeral stripes change to red with age. Abdomen is red with black small rings and bronze-black bands towards the apex (segments 7-9). [5] Wings are hyaline, with a blackish pterostigma. Mature females occur in three colour forms (typical, fulvipes and melanotum), from mostly black to mostly red, but all have yellow bands around the abdominal segments. [4] Some intermediate forms also exist.
The form typica has more black on its abdominal segments than the form fulvipes, particularly on segment 6. Immatures have lighter eyes and have yellow stripes on the thorax, not red. In the form melanotum females show the upper surface of the abdomen almost entirely black. [5] [6]
These damselflies can easily be confused with small red damselflies, but the latter has orange legs, while the large red damselfly has black legs. In Greece and Albania a closely related species occurs, the Greek red damsel (Pyrrhosoma elisabethae). They look very much the same, the females only having a slightly different pronotum with deep folds in the hind margin. The males differ in their lower appendages, which are longer than the upper ones, while the black hook on the lower appendages is half as long as in the large red damselfly. The appendages of the large red damselfly can be seen in the gallery below.
The great red damselfly is often the first damselfly to emerge, usually in April or May. Adults can be found until September, according to locality. [4]
Immature adults mature in about two weeks. Mating occurs in vegetation. [6] The female during the laying of eggs is accompanied by the male, [6] she immerses into the water only the abdomen. Eggs hatch in two-three weeks. Development of larvae takes two years. Larvae feed on aquatic insect larvae, protozoa, rotifers or small crustaceans. [6]
The black-tailed skimmer is a dragonfly belonging to the family Libellulidae.
The keeled skimmer is a species of dragonfly belonging to the family Libellulidae.
The blue-tailed damselfly or common bluetail is a damselfly, belonging to the family Coenagrionidae.
The white-legged damselfly or blue featherleg is a damselfly of slow-flowing, muddy waters. It occurs from the Atlantic to Siberia and is often abundant throughout its range.
Acisoma panorpoides, the Asian pintail, trumpet tail, or grizzled pintail, is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae.
The band-winged meadowhawk is a dragonfly of the genus Sympetrum belonging to the family Libellulidae.
The neon skimmer is a dragonfly of the skimmer family. It can be found near ponds, lakes and slow moving streams in the southwest United States, Central America, and northern South America.
Esme longistyla is damselfly in the family Platycnemididae. It is commonly known as the Nilgiri bambootail. It is endemic to Western Ghats in India.
Eastern forktail is a member of the damselfly family Coenagrionidae.
Lestes praemorsus is a damselfly species in the family Lestidae. It is commonly known as the scalloped spreadwing or sapphire-eyed spreadwing. It is very widely distributed from India to China and south to New Guinea.
The desert whitetail is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae. P. subornata is often put into the genus Libellula.
The boreal bluet is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae.
Lestes sponsa is a damselfly with a wide Palaearctic distribution. It is known commonly as the emerald damselfly or common spreadwing. Both males and females have a metallic green colour and brown wing spots. It resides near pools with aquatic plants. When resting its wings are usually half opened.
Chalcolestes viridis, formerly Lestes viridis, is a damselfly of the family Lestidae. It has a metallic green body and at rest it holds its wings away from its body. Its common name is the willow emerald damselfly, the green emerald damselfly, or the western willow spreadwing. It has an elongated abdomen and pale brown spots on its wings and resides in areas of still water with overhanging trees.
Austrolestes colensonis, commonly known as the blue damselfly, is a species of damselfly of the family Lestidae. It is endemic to New Zealand and can commonly be found throughout the country, and at any time of the year. It is New Zealand's largest damselfly, and only blue odonate.
Lestes elatus is a species of damselfly in the family Lestidae, the spreadwings. It is known commonly as the emerald spreadwing. It is native to India, Thailand and Sri Lanka.
Euphaea cardinalis, Travancore torrent dart, is a species of damselfly in the family Euphaeidae.
Euphaea dispar, Nilgiri torrent dart, is a species of damselfly in the family Euphaeidae.
Euphaea fraseri, Malabar torrent dart, is a species of damselfly in the family Euphaeidae. This species is endemic to the Western Ghats; known to occur in various locations up to Goa.
Lestes dorothea or Forest Spreadwing is a damselfly species in the family Lestidae. It is distributed from south and northeast India to Thailand and Malaysia.