Golden-ringed dragonfly

Golden-ringed dragonfly
male Fermyn Woods, Northamptonshire
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Odonata
Suborder:	Anisoptera
Family:	Cordulegastridae
Genus:	Cordulegaster
Species:	C. boltonii
Binomial name
Cordulegaster boltonii (Donovan, 1807)

The golden-ringed dragonfly (Cordulegaster boltonii) is a large, striking dragonfly and the longest British species,^[1] the only one of its genus to be found in the United Kingdom.^[2]

Identification

They are easily identified by their distinctive black and yellow stripes, which no other dragonfly in the United Kingdom has.^[3] A very large species, males average 74 mm and the larger females 84 mm. Wingspan is up to 101 mm.^[4]

Larvae

The female lays the eggs in shallow water. The hairy larvae live at the bottom of the water and are well camouflaged amongst the silt.^[5] They emerge after about 2–5 years, and usually under the cover of darkness.

Behaviour

They are often seen flying leisurely over mountain streams or a river; they also occasionally show up at a pond. They are also typically seen flying over heath land. Their bright yellow and black stripes make them easy to identify, even from a fair distance away. They feed mainly on insects ranging from small prey such as midges to flies, butterflies and even bumblebees. This strikingly-coloured insect is incredibly aerobatic and they sometimes fly very high up into the sky.^[6]

See also

First description of the species by Moses Harris, 1766, who however wrongly identified it as Libellula forcipata.

• List of British dragonflies

External links

• Media related to Cordulegaster boltonii at Wikimedia Commons
• Data related to Cordulegaster boltonii at Wikispecies

References