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Red-eyed Damselfly

(Scientific Name: Erythromma najas)



Female Red-eyed Damselfly by David Kitching
Female Red-eyed Damselfly by David Kitching
Male Red-eyed Damselfly by David Kitching
Male Red-eyed Damselfly by David Kitching
Red-eyed Damselfly tandem by David Kitching
Red-eyed Damselfly tandem by David Kitching
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Species Information:


Length: 35mm
Flight Period: May to September (occasionally late April and early October)

A robust looking damselfly with a dark greyish abdomen and bronze-black top to the thorax. a blue "tail" in the male.

Male: eyes deep red and with a blue 'tail' at the end of the abdomen.
Female: short, yellowish ante-humeral stripes with greenoish sides to the thorax, green-brown eyes and no blue 'tail'.



Habitat:


Found in lakes, gravel pits, canals and slow-flowing rivers. The males often sit on water lily leaves defending their leaf from allcomers.



Status & Distribution:


Locally common in southern England and the Welsh Borders.



Similar Species:


The similar, but smaller, Small Red-eyed Damselfly is sometimes found in the same habitat and careful observation is needed to distinguish the two species. Could be confused with the Blue-tailed Damselflies Ischnura elegans and I. pumilio, but these are smaller less robust looking insects and do not have red eyes.

Females can be mistaken for the melanotum form of the female Large Red Damselfly, which also develops red eyes but can be distinguished by the shape of the thoracic stripes and the differently-coloured pterostigmata: pale for Red-eyed; black for Large Red.

Male Erythromma viridulum by Pam Taylor

Erythromma viridulum

Small Red-eyed Damselfly
Female Ischnura elegans by David Kitching

Ischnura elegans

Blue tailed Damselfly
Female Pyrrhosoma nymphula by David Kitching

Pyrrhosoma nymphula

Large Red Damselfly