United States and Canada
Mature males of this distinctive pondhaw k have bright red abdomens contrasting with a darker black thorax. The face is black with the top of the frons yellow in young males and females. The thorax is dark in young males and females with a broad stripe of yellow dorsally. The legs are black. The wings are clear with a small, narrow spot at the base of the hindwing. Abdominal segments 1-3 are swollen and the rest of the abdomen gradually tapers to 9. The abdomen becomes brilliant red, more so dorsally, in older males. The cerci are red.
Size: Total length: 37-43 mm; abdomen: 23-28 mm; hindwing: 29-34 mm.
Similar Species (south-central US): No other dragonfly in the region has the distinctive red abdomen contrasting with a black thorax as seen in this species.
Habitat: Ponds, lakes, ditches and slow reaches of rivers and streams.
Natural History: This species is only known from a single locality in the Texas Hill Country within North America, where it was only recently discovered (summer 2001). The presence of multiple individuals there suggests a breeding population, though it must have only recently moved into the area. It is a common ubiquitous species in the tropics and may become well-established in southern Texas. This species behaves like other pondhawks in the south-central United States. The bright red abdomen of males contrasts with green vegetation where they occasionally perch.
Distribution: Texas Hill Country south through Latin America to Argentina.
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).
