| Red-faced Dragonlet (Erythrodiplax fusca (Rambur, 1842)) |
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Scientific name: Erythrodiplax fusca (Rambur, 1842) Common name: Red-faced Dragonlet French name: Order: Odonata Suborder: Anisoptera Family: Libellulidae Wingspan: 50 mm. Biotope: Stagnant or very slow running water. Geographic area: South America, Central America, south of the United States, Lesser Antilles. Flight time: |
Dragonflies of the Erythrodiplax genus are small size dragonflies which generally hold their wings slightly oriented forward when landed. Erythrodiplax fusca shows an important sexual dimorphism. Males have a red face and dark reddish brown eyes and thorax. The abdomen is dark reddish brown on S1-S2, blue pruinose on S3-S7. The end of S7 and S8-S10 are black. The upper parts of the females' eyes is dull red and the lower part is greenish grey. They have a pale brown face and a reddish brown thorax with a dark broad humeral stripe. The abdomen is reddish brown and slightly striated. The fore wings and the hind wings show pale yellow to dark reddish brown basal patches. Juveniles are greenish yellow and striated. Old females are almost black. Female Erythrodiplax castanea also shows slightly shaded wings unlike Erythrodiplax fusca. There is no possible confusion with males which are a bright red colour. Erythrodiplax famula has also darkened wing tips. Experts are used to looking at the layout of the veins on the wings and at females' sub-genital plates to be more confident in telling species apart. |
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I have shot this picture in a waste land in Remire-Montjoly. The picture is not sharp enough to be totally confident in the identification of the species. |
André Bon January 2014