This Clubtail is approximately 2 inches or 50 mm in length. The face is grayish-green with narrow black horizontal stripes. The eyes are green and separated (they do not meet at the top of the head). The thorax is grayish green with prominent black markings and well defined black side stripes. The black abdomen is long and slender with narrow yellow dorsal streaks and ends in an enlarged flattened “club” as wide the thorax. There are 4 yellow spots on the club with the forward spots being smaller. The legs are black. The female is similar to the male except she has more yellow coloration on a thicker abdomen and the club is not as large.
The species is probably fairly common at the appropriate time (June and July) along the Missouri River. It usually perches on rocks and vegetation close to the river’s edge. A female was photographed on July 2, 2005 by the Missouri River at Fontenelle Forest. A male was photographed on June 19, 2012 at Camp Brewster, Fontenelle Forest. A female was photographed on June 22, 2013 at Neale Woods.
The Cobra Clubtail is named for the wide club, shaped like the hood of a cobra snake. Males can wander some distance from water and can be seen perching on low vegetation. The female may amass a large number of eggs before she flies out over the river where she dips her abdomen in the water and releases the eggs.
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