E-Fauna BC Home

Lestes forcipatus
Sweetflag Spreadwing
Family: Lestidae
Species account author: Robert Cannings.
Extracted from Introducing the Dragonflies of British Columbia and the Yukon (2002)
Introduction to the Odonata of BC
The Families of Odonata of BC

Photograph

© Robert A. Cannings     (Photo ID #999)

Map

Click on map to view a larger version of this map.
Distribution of Lestes forcipatus in British Columbia.
(Click on the map to view a larger version.)
Source: (for the static map) RBCM and BCCDC 2004 ©

Species Information


Description

Male very similar to the Common Spreadwing. Identification is best done with the female, whose large, distinctive ovipositor extends beyond the end of the abdomen. Length: ♂ ♀ 40 mm.


Flight Period

B.C., mid June to mid September.

Genus Description


Large damselflies, brown, black, metallic-green or bronze above, mostly pale below. As they age, parts of the body, including the tip of the abdomen in males, often become pruinose bluish white. Females lay eggs in tandem with males, usually in plants above the surface of the water. The larvae are long and slender with banded gills and an unusually elongated labium. Some species are adapted to temporary ponds; the eggs overwinter and the larvae grow rapidly after the basin fills with water in the winter or spring.

Biology

Family Description

A small but widely distributed family in B.C., containing only one genus here, Lestes, with five species. The common name comes from the characteristic posture of the adults - they usually perch with wings half-spread.
Field Notes

Unknown in B.C. until 1998; it is so similar to the Common Spreadwing, it had been overlooked. Since then, although it is uncommon, it has been found in a variety of ponds, marshy lakes and peatlands, but is probably most common in sedge fens. In eastern North America, at least, this damselfly commonly lays eggs in the sweetflag, a kind of aquatic iris, thus its English name.

Distribution


Southern. Scattered localities in B.C. south of 56°N.

Status Information

Origin StatusProvincial StatusBC List
(Red Blue List)		COSEWIC
NativeS4YellowNot Listed



BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer--the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

© 2014 E-Fauna BC  Contact us