| American rubyspot | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Odonata |
| Suborder: | Zygoptera |
| Family: | Calopterygidae |
| Genus: | Hetaerina |
| Species: | H. americana
|
| Binomial name | |
| Hetaerina americana | |
| |
| Range of H. americana [2] | |
The American rubyspot (Hetaerina americana) is a damselfly of the family Calopterygidae. Males have a lustrous red head and thorax. The abdomen of both genders is brilliant green. [3] The female may have either green or copper colored marks on the thorax. [4]
-
Female copper form -
Female green form
During mating, a male uses claspers at the end of his abdomen to grab a female behind the head, and the female bends her abdomen to engage segments 2–3 of the male, where sperm is stored, forming a "wheel" or "valentine". The male forcefully expels sperm stored by the female from prior matings before injecting his own.
-
Male above, female below -
Mating wheel; sperm removal
Etymology
The name highlights this damselfly's status as the most widespread of the North American rubyspots. [5] It is reported from all of the lower 48 US states except Washington and Idaho, and is also found in Mexico and southern and eastern Canada. [2]
References
- ^ "Hetaerina americana". Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- ^ a b "Distribution Viewer". OdonataCentral. Archived from the original on September 3, 2011. Retrieved December 17, 2009.
- ^ Abbott, John C. (2005). Dragonflies and Damselflies of Texas and the South-Central United States. Princeton University Press. p. 25. ISBN 0-691-11364-5.
- ^ "Hetaerina americana". BugGuide.Net. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
-
^ Paulson, Dennis R; Dunkle, Sidney W (14 April 2009). "A Checklist of North American Odonata": 5.
{{ cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=( help)