United States and Canada
The face is pale green and the vertex dark brown. The thorax is grayish-green with a dark middorsal stripe that widens as it approaches the collar. The antehumeral and humeral stripes are narrowly separated by a pale stripe no more than a fifth their width, except at their extreme lower ends where they are confluent. The mid- and third lateral stripes are present and diffusely joined together. The legs are brown, but pale on the under side of the femora with a yellowish-white stripe on the outer surface of the tibiae ext ending down onto the tarsi. The abdomen is largely black, with broad yellowish stripe ventrolaterally in females. The pale middorsal stripe is nearly continuous in females and tapers to a point on each segment in males. Segments 7-9 are only slightly expanded laterally in male and not at all in the female. The middorsal stripe is reduced to a small basal spot on segment 8 or may appear as a disconnected thin line distally in females. There is a broad stripe on segment 9 and there is a conspicuous pale spot on segment 10. Segments 8-9 are yellow laterally and the male caudal appendages are brown.
Size: Total length: 44-49 mm; abdomen: 33-36 mm; hindwing: 24-30 mm.
Similar Species (south-central US): Pronghorn Clubtail (G. graslinellus) is larger and more brightly colored. In Ashy Clubtail (G. lividus) the antehumeral and humeral stripes are fused and in Oklahoma Clubtail (G. oklahomensis) they are narrowly separated by a pale stripe.
Habitat: Small creeks and streams with moderate current and sand or mud bottoms.
Natural History: Females usually don't venture far from the bank, laying eggs 1-2 feet above the water, by touching the abdomen to the surface and quickly rising again. Several dips are usually made before moving to a new location. Both sexes typically perch on the ground or low in vegetation.
Distribution: Restricted to Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas.
Source: Abbott, J.C. 2006-2010. OdonataCentral: An online resource for the distribution and identification of Odonata. Available at OdonataCentral.
Edited by Drew Weber (9/24/2015).
