It is so common to see dragonflies, but knowing which dragonfly species they are is not easy. I am still very new to this insect, and I am trying to learn more about them. Today, I will only bring you 10 beautiful dragonfly species in Cambodia though there are more than just 10. Let’s find more details about them below with me.
Asian Sapphire Flutterer
This dragonfly is absolutely true to its middle name, the rich blue and purple highlights on its wings base are stunning. You can also tell males and females apart by just looking at the color patches on their wings. A male’s wings are brighter purplish-blue while a female’s wings are darker. The abdomen and thorax of this little bug are dark metallic blue while their eyes are reddish-brown on top and dark brown below. It is common for them to hang out near lakes, ponds, and sluggish streams in swampy forests. And just like any other dragonflies out there, this one also loves perching on the very tip of sharp grasses.
Common Flangetail
The common flangetail has a black and yellow body with clear wings, measuring up to 3.9 centimeters. Meanwhile, its entire body length can be from 6.4 to 12 centimeters which is large for a dragonfly. It has a yellow face with blue or grayish-green eyes. Its body is heavily built, and its appendage is straight with two green lateral bands on its synthorax. The most unique feature of this dragonfly species is the leaf-like projection near the end of its abdomen. These dragonflies occur in Africa, Asia, and Australia where they hang out around drainages, lakes, and ponds in the countryside. They perch early in the morning to sunbathe before coming down to the water in late morning.
Ditch Jewel
Here we have a small dragonfly species with a bulky body, yellowish-green eyes, and transparent wings with bright orange patches. It has an olivaceous-brown thorax with a reddish-brown humeral stripe and two brownish stripes on each side. A ditch jewel grows to around 2.1 centimeters long with a 2.5 centimeters wingspan. Ditch jewel dragonflies are common along ditches, ponds, sewage canals, and tanks but they breed in lakes and slow-moving streams. They fly very close to the ground and they perch on aquatic weeds.
Greater Blue Wing
Greater blue wings are one of the most beautiful dragonfly species you will ever come across though they are quite rare. It is very easy to recognize due to its broad and dark wings with strong purplish-green iridescence. This bug has a pale bluish face with metallic blue-green fronts while the eyes are reddish-brown above and violaceous below. Greater blue wing dragonflies are common near slow-moving channels in lowland swamp forests. These dragonflies like to perch in sunny patches around marshes, paddy fields, and ponds. with their wings away from the sun.
Grizzled Pintail
The most distinctive feature of this dragonfly species is its azure-blue marble thorax with black patterns in males. It is a delightful bug with both abdomen and blue eyes along with transparent wings. You can tell a female apart from a male by her greenish-yellow abdomen, eyes, and thorax. These dragonflies are found in subtropical or tropical marshy or swampy habitats. Their little wings are quite weak so they only have short flights close to the herbage and reeds. They are common in heavily weeded lakes and ponds which is also where they breed.
Long-Legged Marsh Glider
Just like the name suggests, this dragonfly species does have very long legs that are almost spidery. A long-legged marsh glider has a yellow or pale brown face with an iridescent purple front, a yellowish-brown body, and transparent wings. Its eyes are reddish-brown above, brown on the side, and bluish-gray below. And you can probably already tell by the name, these dragonflies fly around marshes. They also hang out near lakes and weedy ponds where they perch on bare ends of shrubs or tall aquatic weeds.
Scarlet Marsh Hawk
A scarlet marsh hawk is a small dragonfly species with a bright red abdomen and anal appendages; hence the name. Its thorax is dark chocolate-brown but pale on the sides while the wings are transparent with deep golden amber at the base. Both males and females have dark reddish-brown eyes but females have golden-oliverous abdomen and thorax instead of bright red. Scarlet marsh hawk dragonflies are common in weed covered ditches and ponds.
Slender Skimmer
Adult slender skimmer dragonflies are grayish to greenish yellow with black and pale markings, and they have green eyes. The abdomens are greenish-yellow with black markings, and both sexes have similar colors, size, and shape. As for this one, it is more widespread than many dragonfly species on our list today. Its distribution spreads across Asia, Europe, North Africa, and all the way to Australia and Micronesia. They perch motionless on dry twigs and shrubs for long periods, and they prey on smaller butterflies and dragonflies.
Wandering Glider
Here you are looking at the most widespread dragonfly species in the world, with a distribution on every continent. Except for Antarctica, of course. It is a beautiful dragonfly measuring up to 4.5 centimeters long with a wingspan of 7.2 to 8.4 centimeters. They have chestnut-red eyes that are so big they take up most of the head. Males are more colorful with the reddish head and thorax while females are rather yellowish in color. Both sexes have transparent wings with a broad base but specimens with brown, olive, and yellow wings also exist. These dragonflies hang out in swarms over open areas, paddy fields, and playgrounds.
Yellow-Striped Flutterer
A yellow-striped flutterer has a slightly dark met’ body while the transparent wings have golden-black and blue coloration at the bases. The wings of these dragonflies are much longer than their bodies, and the hind wings are pretty wide. A male’s wings are also longer than a female’s wings, growing up to 4.5 centimeters. The eyes of both males and females are reddish-brown above and light brown below.
The yellow-striped flutterer is widespread in Southeast Asia, and it also has some range across northern Australia and Taiwan as well. These dragonflies love the sun and they often fly around marshes, ponds, and swamp forests. As flutterers, they flutter at slow speed while gliding most of the time with the ability to change direction quickly.
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