Pond Damsels

The Pond Damsel family is the largest family of damselflies. Most Pond Damsels are found near floating vegetation on ponds and other still waters. However, some damsels such as Dancers live along streams. Pond Damsels are mostly clear-winged and perch horizontally with their wings held together over the abdomen. They are closely related to dragonflies but differ in that they have eyes that are set far apart, that is they are separated by more than the width of an eye. They are typically smaller and more slender than dragonflies. Pond Damsels tend to be weak fliers and skim the surface of the water or stay in sheltered vegetation. Like all damselflies they hunt small flying insects. They range in size from less than 3/4 inch to about 2 inches in length. There are only 2 Amphiagrion species in North America, one in the east and one in the west. Both are red in color and identical in appearance and can be found at spring-fed seeps and ponds. Bluets (in the genus Enallagma) are usually blue, perch on vegetation around ponds and lakes, and tandem oviposit at still water sites. Dancers (Argia) have long spines on the legs, perch on the ground or rocks and tandem oviposit in moving waters. Forktails (Ischnura) perch on emergent vegetation and females oviposit alone into floating vegetation.

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• CITRINE FORKTAIL
• FRAGILE FORKTAIL
• EASTERN FORKTAIL
• VARIABLE DANCER
• SPRINGWATER DANCER
• PAIUTE DANCER
• BLUE-FRONTED DANCER
• AZURE BLUET
• FAMILIAR BLUET
• VESPER BLUET
• ORANGE BLUET
• SLENDER BLUET
• SKIMMING BLUET
• RED DAMSEL