The Great Pondhawk is a dragonfly

Dragonfly

A dragonfly is a winged insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera . It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body...

 of the family Libellulidae

Libellulidae

The skimmers or perchers and their relatives form the Libellulidae, the largest dragonfly family in the world. It is sometimes considered to contain the Corduliidae as the subfamily Corduliinae and the Macromiidae as the subfamily Macromiinae. Even if these are excluded , there still remains a...

, native to the southern United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

.

Distribution

The Great Pondhawk Dragonfly is an interesting green dragonfly that is relatively uncommon. This is a tropical dragonfly that can be found mostly around the southern United States areas. In the central United States it can be found in the lower Rio Grande River area and they tend to migrate to Northern Oklahoma. Males and females are fairly similar in appearance, only the male
has darker markings near the abdomen.

Habitat

Great Pondhawk Dragonflies prefer tropical regions in the world. They enjoy still water so they have a good place to lay their eggs. Like all dragonflies they need still water to lay their eggs because when the babies are born they have a small air sac so they can climb up a weed to the surface.