Lestes parvidens
Encyclopedia
Chalcolestes parvidens, formerly Lestes parvidens, is a damselfly
of the family Lestidae
. It has a metallic green body and at rest it holds its wings away from its body. Its common name in English is the Eastern Willow Spreadwing.
is separated from Lestes because of differences in their larvae. C. parvidens is closely related to C. viridis
and used to be considered a subspecies
of C. viridis, however there are small morphological differences between the two species both as adults and larvae and analysis of proteins from the two species, by electrophoresis
, also supports their separation into two species, but they are hard to tell apart in the field.
is pale brown and outlined in black. The thorax
has thin yellow antehumerals and broader yellow stripe above a thin black line on each side; the upper edge of the stripe is irregular. Both C. viridis and C. parvidens have a prominent spur-like marking on the side of the thorax.
Behaviour is similar to that described in C. viridis. Mature males defend vertical territories in marginal shrubs and small trees where they find and mate with females in the normal damselfly manner forming the wheel position. Egg laying occurs with the pair in tandem, the eggs being laid into incisions in the bark of overhanging branches, not into submerged vegetation as is the case in many damselflies. Egg laying can result in distinct oval galls forming in the shrub's bark. The eggs develop rapidly for a few weeks and then enter a diapause state. In this state the eggs development is very slow and it is in this state that the eggs overwinter. The following spring the eggs hatch, the larvae drop into the water and start to develop. Growth is rapid and adults can emerge in a couple of months. After emerging the adults move away from water to mature. In this stage of their life-cycle which in C. parvidens is quite long, the immature adults cannot breed. The adults need a period of time for their reproductive organs to develop and this non-breeding period also stops the adults breeding too early in the season. If the females lay eggs early in the year the eggs will develop when it is to warm to for them to enter diapause. They might hatch out before winter and the resultant larva will die when winter temperatures occur. When fully mature the adults return to water and start breeding.
Damselfly
Damselflies are insects in the order Odonata. Damselflies are similar to dragonflies, but the adults can be distinguished by the fact that the wings of most damselflies are held along, and parallel to, the body when at rest...
of the family Lestidae
Lestidae
Lestidae is a rather small family of cosmopolitan, large-sized, slender damselflies. They are of the order of the dragonflies and are commonly known as "Spreadwings." There are two subfamilies in Lestdae. The first subfamily is Lestinae. Damselflies in Lestinae rest with their wings partly open...
. It has a metallic green body and at rest it holds its wings away from its body. Its common name in English is the Eastern Willow Spreadwing.
Taxonomy
The genus ChalcolestesChalcolestes
Chalcolestes is a small genus of damselfly in family Lestidae. They are commonly known as Willow Spreadwings. They are similar to the Spreadwings of the genus Lestes....
is separated from Lestes because of differences in their larvae. C. parvidens is closely related to C. viridis
Lestes viridis
Chalcolestes viridis, formerly Lestes viridis, is a damselfly of the family Lestidae. It has a metallic green body and at rest it holds its wings away from its body...
and used to be considered a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of C. viridis, however there are small morphological differences between the two species both as adults and larvae and analysis of proteins from the two species, by electrophoresis
Electrophoresis
Electrophoresis, also called cataphoresis, is the motion of dispersed particles relative to a fluid under the influence of a spatially uniform electric field. This electrokinetic phenomenon was observed for the first time in 1807 by Reuss , who noticed that the application of a constant electric...
, also supports their separation into two species, but they are hard to tell apart in the field.
Distribution and habitat
C. parvidens is found in eastern and central Europe, in Croatia, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Syria, Jordan, Israel and Turkey. It is found on islands in the eastern Mediterranean; on Cyprus, Corsica, Crete and Sicily. In Italy and the Balkans both C. parvidens and C. viridis occur together. It is only in the last 20 years that odonaterists have been separating C. parvidens from C. viridis so some of the older records for C. viridis will probably be for C. parvidens.Identification
In the field it is not possible to reliably distinguish C. viridis from C. parvidens. Both species are mainly metallic green, like the Lestes damselflies, but larger and darker but they do not have a powder blue pruinescence which is common in Lestes. The pterostigmaPterostigma
The pterostigma is a cell in the outer wing of insects which is often thickened or coloured and so stands out from other cells. It is particularly noticeable in dragonflies, but present also in other insect groups, such as snakeflies, hymenopterans and megalopterans.The purpose of the pterostigma,...
is pale brown and outlined in black. The thorax
Thorax (insect anatomy)
The thorax is the mid section of the insect body. It holds the head, legs, wings and abdomen. It is also called mesosoma in other arthropods....
has thin yellow antehumerals and broader yellow stripe above a thin black line on each side; the upper edge of the stripe is irregular. Both C. viridis and C. parvidens have a prominent spur-like marking on the side of the thorax.
Behaviour
Flight period is from May to November.Behaviour is similar to that described in C. viridis. Mature males defend vertical territories in marginal shrubs and small trees where they find and mate with females in the normal damselfly manner forming the wheel position. Egg laying occurs with the pair in tandem, the eggs being laid into incisions in the bark of overhanging branches, not into submerged vegetation as is the case in many damselflies. Egg laying can result in distinct oval galls forming in the shrub's bark. The eggs develop rapidly for a few weeks and then enter a diapause state. In this state the eggs development is very slow and it is in this state that the eggs overwinter. The following spring the eggs hatch, the larvae drop into the water and start to develop. Growth is rapid and adults can emerge in a couple of months. After emerging the adults move away from water to mature. In this stage of their life-cycle which in C. parvidens is quite long, the immature adults cannot breed. The adults need a period of time for their reproductive organs to develop and this non-breeding period also stops the adults breeding too early in the season. If the females lay eggs early in the year the eggs will develop when it is to warm to for them to enter diapause. They might hatch out before winter and the resultant larva will die when winter temperatures occur. When fully mature the adults return to water and start breeding.
External links
- Image of adult http://www.pbase.com/mbulte/image/97189219
- Image of adult http://www.pbase.com/mbulte/image/97189217