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Ophiogomphus severus
Pale Snaketail
Family: Gomphidae
Species account author: Robert Cannings.
Extracted from Introducing the Dragonflies of British Columbia and the Yukon (2002)

Photograph

© marlene johnston     (Photo ID #18462)

Map

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

Species Information


Description

The face is yellow with no stripes. The thorax is green-yellow to green with fine brown stripes on the sides and a prominent oval spot in front of the forewing base. The abdomen is dark brown, sometimes mostly yellow below, with large yellow spots on top. Length: ♂ 51 mm, ♀ 52 mm.


Flight Period

B.C., early June to mid September.

Genus Description


Most snaketails live in eastern North America. The three species in B.C. fly along clear streams and lakeshores; uncommon in settled areas, at least partly because the burrowing larvae are sensitive to changes in water flow and siltation, and they are especially affected by poor logging practices. The mature adult’s thorax is green; younger adults are more yellow. The abdomen has white or yellow marks on the sides and yellow spots on top; this snake-like pattern gives the genus its English and scientific names (ophio is Greek for “snake” and gomphos means “bolt” or “arrow”). The hindwings have a three-celled anal loop. Male’s upper appendages are short and usually pointed in side view.

Biology

Family Description

A large family, but poorly represented in our region. B.C. has only six species and the Yukon appears to have none (although two species may live in the southeast). Compared to some other families, clubtails are not common here, but they are easily recognizable by their widely separated eyes and their green or yellow bodies striped in brown and black. The tip of the abdomen, especially in males, is enlarged, giving them their English name. Females lack an ovipositor and drop their eggs directly into clear streams and along the sandy shallows of larger lakes; they lay their eggs without the protection of their mates. Larvae burrow in the bottom sediments of these water bodies.
Field Notes

Uncommon. Most records are from clear streams, but this species also develops in large, muddy rivers and in lakes, where it sometimes emerges on floating waterlily leaves.

Distribution


Western. Widespread in B.C. east of the Coast Mountains; it may occur in the southeastern Yukon, but has not yet been found there.

Status Information

Origin StatusProvincial StatusBC List
(Red Blue List)
COSEWIC
NativeS5YellowNot Listed



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