Dragonflies & DamselfliesDragonfly or Damselfly? Sex Lives and Dragonflies Damselflies Diplacodes haematodes Diplacodes melanopsis (Black-faced Percher) Hemicordulia tau Orthetrum caledonicum Orthetrum migratum Orthetrum villosovittatum
The Fiery Skimmer (Orthetrum villosovittatum), also known as the Bog Skimmer Dragonfly, habitat in Australia stretches through Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, eastern New South Wales, Queensland up through to Cape York Peninsula, top end of the Northern Territory, and a sighting in the Prince Regent River of Western Australia. It’s range also extends to the Moluccas archipelago of Indonesia (east of Indonesia), New Guinea and neighbouring islands.
With a wingspan of 60–85 mm, the Fiery Skimmer Dragonfly inhabit boggy seepages, streams, ponds and swamps. The mature males have dark greyish to greenish-brown thoraxes and red abdomens, with the abdomen constricted at segment four. The young males have an amber and black colouring whilst the females are ochre-coloured.
Pictured here is the male and female mating pair.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Subphylum: Hexapoda
- Class: Insecta
- Subclass: Pterygota
- Order: Odonata
- Suborder: Anisoptera
- Superfamily: Libelluloidea
- Family: Libellulidae
- Genus: Orthetrum
- Species: Orthetrum villosovittalum
Footnote & References
- Fiery Skimmer (Orthetrum villosovittatum), Photos © Sheena Shepherd
- Many thanks to Simon Joseph for ID, member of Australian Dragonflies and Damselflies, Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/Ozdragonflies
- Fiery Skimmer (Orthetrum villosovittatum), iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/127136-Orthetrum-villosovittatum
- Orthetrum villosovittatum, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthetrum_villosovittatum (last visited Nov. 21, 2022).
- Fiery Skimmer Dragonfly – Orthetrum villosovittatum, Brisbane Insects and Spiders, https://www.brisbaneinsects.com/brisbane_dragons/BogSkimmer.htm
Dragonflies & DamselfliesDragonfly or Damselfly? Sex Lives and Dragonflies Damselflies Diplacodes haematodes Diplacodes melanopsis (Black-faced Percher) Hemicordulia tau Orthetrum caledonicum Orthetrum migratum Orthetrum villosovittatum
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