Small damselflies that normally perch with wings closed above the abdomen. Most males are blue marked with black, but the main colour may be green, yellow, orange, red or purple. Females often have two colour forms per species, one similar to the male (usually blue). Females lay eggs in the tissues of water plants, sometimes completely submerging themselves for a long time while laying. Larave are not as long as spreadwing larave and have short labia, unstalked at the base. There are six genera and 18 species of pond damsels in our region. The American Bluets (Enallagma) and forktails (Ischnura) are the most common groups.
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One of the most common damselflies of low and moderate elevations across southern B.C. Most common around marshes and the marshy edges of small lakes and ponds; the only dragonfly that often flies among dense cattails and bulrushes. Prefers neutral and alkaline waters. It has one of the longest flight seasons of any dragonfly in B.C., and is usually the first to appear in spring.
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