this post was submitted on 08 Jul 2024
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What's this flying insect? (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 4 months ago by DeltaWingDragon@sh.itjust.works to c/bugs@lemmy.world
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Looks like a dragonfly, flies like a moth.

I have video, but can't post it here and now.

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[–] DeltaWingDragon@sh.itjust.works 1 points 4 months ago (1 children)

I'm not sure if it's a damselfly, or any Odonata. Damselflies are graceful and they can hover, this one flapped and tumbled like a lazy moth. I think it's an antlion?

[–] kep@lemmy.world 2 points 4 months ago

So there's a neat trick for Odonata to differentiate between Damsels and Dragons. Look at the wings — do they "fan out" or are they "in line" with the abdomen? If they "fan out", and all four wings are roughly the same shape and size, it's a Dragonfly. If the wings are "in line" with the abdomen and the forewings and hindwings have slightly or even dramatically different shapes, it's a Damselfly.

Using this logic, we're looking at a Damselfly here. This can be confirmed by looking at the insect's body, it's very slim, whereas Dragonflies tend to have stouter body segments.

As for a species, at a glance, it looks an awful lot like an Ebony Jewelwing to me, but I'm not going to identify it with those pictures, as pretty (and haunting) as they may be, there isn't enough detail to use a key. But the colors, shape, and wing patternation are decently convincing that this is a female Calopteryx maculata.

Thanks for sharing!