Ruddy Darter
Encyclopedia
The Ruddy Darter is a Europe
an species of dragonfly
of the family Libellulidae
.
and abdomen
of the male are vivid red, while the female is slightly smaller, and is a golden-yellow colour with black markings. The abdomen widens for the final third of its length and shows a marked pinched section where it joins the thorax.
The all-black legs of the Ruddy Darter distinguish it from the otherwise very similar Common Darter
(Sympetrum striolatum) and Vagrant Darter
(Sympetrum vulgatum), both of which show yellow stripes on their legs.
takes place on the wing, with the coupled pair performing a dipping flight over the water. The female jettisons her fertilised eggs
at the water surface by alternating movements of the abdomen. The male will hover nearby during this period and protect the female by driving off any approaching males.
The larva
e spend the year beneath the water surface before emerging and pupa
ting into adults.
regions throughout Europe as far west as Siberia
and as far south as the northern Sahara
. Its conservation status
is regarded as secure, and indeed numbers seem to be increasing in some locations such as central England
. It tends to prefer quiet bodies of water that feature semiaquatic vegetation such as rushes
and reeds
.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an species of 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...
.
Description
The Ruddy Darter attains a wingspan of up to 6 cm. The head, thoraxThorax
The thorax is a division of an animal's body that lies between the head and the abdomen.-In tetrapods:...
and abdomen
Abdomen
In vertebrates such as mammals the abdomen constitutes the part of the body between the thorax and pelvis. The region enclosed by the abdomen is termed the abdominal cavity...
of the male are vivid red, while the female is slightly smaller, and is a golden-yellow colour with black markings. The abdomen widens for the final third of its length and shows a marked pinched section where it joins the thorax.
The all-black legs of the Ruddy Darter distinguish it from the otherwise very similar Common Darter
Common Darter
The Common Darter is a dragonfly of the family Libellulidae native to Eurasia. It is one of the most common dragonflies in Europe, occurring in a wide variety of water bodies, though with a preference for breeding in still water such as ponds and lakes...
(Sympetrum striolatum) and Vagrant Darter
Vagrant Darter
The Vagrant Darter, Sympetrum vulgatum, is a European dragonfly. The species takes it English name from its habit of occasionally appearing as a rare vagrant north of its normal range. However, it likely to be under-recorded because it is very similar to the Common Darter, S. striolatum.In central...
(Sympetrum vulgatum), both of which show yellow stripes on their legs.
Lifestyle
The Ruddy Darter can be found between the months of July and November. MatingMating
In biology, mating is the pairing of opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms for copulation. In social animals, it also includes the raising of their offspring. Copulation is the union of the sex organs of two sexually reproducing animals for insemination and subsequent internal fertilization...
takes place on the wing, with the coupled pair performing a dipping flight over the water. The female jettisons her fertilised eggs
Roe
Roe or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses of fish and certain marine animals, such as shrimp, scallop and sea urchins...
at the water surface by alternating movements of the abdomen. The male will hover nearby during this period and protect the female by driving off any approaching males.
The larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e spend the year beneath the water surface before emerging and pupa
Pupa
A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation. The pupal stage is found only in holometabolous insects, those that undergo a complete metamorphosis, going through four life stages; embryo, larva, pupa and imago...
ting into adults.
Range and Habitat
The Ruddy Darter is to be found in temperateTemperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
regions throughout Europe as far west as Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
and as far south as the northern Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
. Its conservation status
Conservation status
The conservation status of a group of organisms indicates whether the group is still extant and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future...
is regarded as secure, and indeed numbers seem to be increasing in some locations such as central England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It tends to prefer quiet bodies of water that feature semiaquatic vegetation such as rushes
Juncaceae
Juncaceae, the rush family, are a monocotyledonous family of flowering plants. There are eight genera and about 400 species. Members of the Juncaceae are slow-growing, rhizomatous, herbaceous plants, and they may superficially resemble grasses. They often grow on infertile soils in a wide range...
and reeds
Phragmites
Phragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...
.