Green darner

Green darner
Adult female, Blackwell Forest Preserve, Illinois[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Odonata
Suborder: Anisoptera
Family: Aeshnidae
Genus: Anax
Species: A. junius
Binomial name
Anax junius
(Drury, 1773)

The green darner or common green darner[2] (Anax junius), after its resemblance to a darning-needle, is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae. One of the most common and abundant species throughout North America, it also ranges south to Panama.[3] It is well known for its great migration distance from the northern United States south into Texas and Mexico.[4] It also occurs in the Caribbean, Tahiti, and Asia from Japan to mainland China.[5] It is the official insect for the state of Washington in the United States.

The green darner is one of the largest extant dragonflies: males grow to 76 mm (3.0 in) in length with a wingspan of up to 80 mm (3.1 in).[5][6]

Females oviposit in aquatic vegetation, eggs laid beneath the water surface. Nymphs (naiads) are aquatic carnivores, feeding on insects, tadpoles and small fish. Adult darners catch insects on the wing, including ant royalty, moths, mosquitoes and flies.

References

  1. ↑ Cirrus Digital Anax junius
  2. ↑ Dunkle, S.W. (2000). Dragonflies through Binoculars: A Field Guide to Dragonflies of North America. New York:Oxford University Press, p.33.
  3. ↑ Eaton, Eric R.; Kaufman, Kenn (2006). Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company. p. 42. ISBN 978-0-618-15310-7.
  4. ↑ Evans, Arthur V. (2007). Field Guide to Insects and Spiders of North America. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. p. 62. ISBN 978-1-4027-4153-1.
  5. 1 2 University of Michigan Zoology Anax junius
  6. ↑ Hahn, Jeffrey (2009). Insects of the North Woods. Kollath+Stensaas Publishing. p. 16. ISBN 978-0-9792006-4-9.

Media related to Anax junius at Wikimedia Commons

External identifiers for Anax junius
Encyclopedia of Life 131866
ITIS 101598
Also found in: Wikispecies
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