Blue Skimmer: Young Male, dorsal

Class:

Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta)

Order:

Dragonflies (Odonata)

Family:

Skimmer (Epiprocta: Libellulidae) iNaturalist Observation

Species:

Blue Skimmer (Orthetrum caledonicum)

This Photo:

Young Male, dorsal

Thank you Reiner Richter for confirming the id of this species for us

General Species Information:
Found on Ellura (in the Murray Mallee, SA), the Adelaide Hills and elsewhere
These can be difficult to distinguish as both genders are yellow and black when young. As they age they turn blue. The males go a bright, light sky blue; the females become grey blue.
All males have 3 longer appendages on the rear, the females 2 shorter appendages.
If you are able to take a ventral photo, the males have additional genetals near the join between body & tail. This is what the female connects to when they are mating.

This species is

Australian Native Species, not listed in the SA Murray Mallee Survey of 2010.

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