A dragonfly is an insect that comes with large eyes along with a long slender body and wings that are perpendicular to the body while in flight. The dragonflies are one of the animals that travel the farthest and are mostly visible in Africa, Asia, Central America, Eurasia, Europe, North America, Ocean, Oceania, and South America. The habit of dragonflies is near ponds, streams, marshes, or where they lay thier eggs and their larvae nymphs develop. Here is the list of 10 types of dragonflies in the world,
Types Of Dragonflies In The World
1. Clubtail Dragonfly
Clubtail dragonflies also known as club tails are a family of dragonflies that contains about 90 genera and 900 species scattered across North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Talking about appearance, they have compound eyes along with a trait they share with the Petaluridae and with damselflies. They are also categorized as fast-flying dragonflies with short flight seasons. The dragonfly species spend most of the time at rest, perching in a suitable position to dart forth to prey on flying insects.
Image Source: Wikimedia
2. River Cruiser Dragonfly
The River Cruiser Dragonfly scientific name Macromia taeniolata is a species of dragonfly that belongs to the family Macromiidae. Talking about their appearance, they are long and slender insects with bright green eyes and dark brown bodies with yellow stripes. Both males and females look alike and are mostly seen across large streams and rivers. As of now, 9 species have been identified in North America, and can even fly down in the middle of roads.
Image Source: Vicki
3. Skimmer Dragonfly
Skimmer dragonflies are one of the most common and colorful dragonflies in the world. Talking about the appearance, they come with two pairs of large, usually patterned, gossamer wings and also a hind pair of wings that is slightly larger than the forewings. The lifecycle of a Skimmer Dragonfly is a Simple metamorphosis that includes the egg, nymph & adult phases.n The adult species emerge in the spring, summer, or fall and live for a few weeks to a few months. They are mostly seen on the vegetation and hiding around underwater structures.
Image Source: Wikimedia
4. Spiketail Dragonfly
The spike-tail dragonfly gets its name from the length and shape of the female ovipositor. These are the family of Odonata (dragonflies) from the suborder Anisoptera. These dragon species are commonly known as spiketails and some of the vernacular names of this family are biddie and flying adder. These species are mostly seen along small, clear, woodland streams flying very slowly between 30 to 70 cm above the water. The family of dragonflies is distributed worldwide and all eight species in North America belong to the genus Cordulegaster.
Image Source: Wikimedia
5. Emerald Dragonfly
The Hine’s emerald is one of the endangered dragonfly species found in the United States and Canada. The population still exists in Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Ontario, and Wisconsin. The larvae are still found in shallow, flowing water in fens and marshes, and often use crayfish burrows. The primary threat to the dragonfly species includes habitat loss and alteration, however, the good part is that they are legally protected in both the United States and Canada.
Image Source: Wikimedia
6. Petaltail Dragonfly
The Petaltail Dragonfly is the world’s largest dragonfly along with a wingspan of 160 mm. The dragonfly species are found in Queensland, Australia, and its name is derived from the Latin adjective ingens “huge”. The wingspan of female species is between 158 to 162 mm and the body length is upto 125 mm. The larvae are usually seen along the river margin and hunt passing prey.
Also Read: 10 Most Popular Asian Birds In The World
Image Source: David
7. Hawker Dragonfly
Hawker Dragonfly also known as the Southern hawker is a large hawker dragonfly species that will fly on the wing from June through to October. The body length is up to 7cm and can be easily seen between June to October. They are mostly seen in the regions of England and Wales, however, slowly spreading into Scotland. It likes to habitat in places with inhabit well-vegetated, small ponds and garden ponds.
Image Source: Wikimedia
8. Tigertail Dragonfly
The name of Tigertail Dragonfly comes from the black and yellow markings along its slim body. The dragonfly species can be identified with the help of hairy and have a pointed body adapted to living in gravel, sand, and mud. The species is distributed across south-eastern New South Wales and northern Victoria. The scientific name of the Tigertail Dragonfly is Eusynthemis tillyardi which signifies Australia’s most prolific entomologist, R.J. Tillyard who, at the beginning of the 20th century.
Image Source: Wikimedia
9. Darner Dragonfly
These dragonfly species are mostly seen near the ponds, streams, and lakes of the United States. They are increasing in the United States because of the variety of climates. The adult species emerge during the late summer and fall and can be found flying through most of the warm spells of early Florida winter. Males species can be identified with the help of eye color that changes from green to blue, however, female eye color changes from green to brown over time. It is one of the different types of dragonflies in the world.
Image Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters
10. Spreadwing Damselfly
Spreadwing Damselfly is one of the small types of dragonfly with a body length of between 30 to 35 cm in length. They can be distinguished with the help of the black and yellow striped pattern on their thorax. Both Males and females are sexually dimorphic. The lifecycle starts from an aquatic nymph stage and a terrestrial adult stage. The nymphs are aquatic and can be found in slow-moving bodies of water such as ponds and marshes. These Nymphs hundreds for small insects and other invertebrates and takes between 1 to 2 years to develop into adults.
Image Source: Pascal
These are the different types of dragonflies in the world. Kindly share and do post your comments.
