Indolestes gracilis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Indolestes gracilis |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Indolestes gracilis davenporti | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Indolestes
|
| Species: |
gracilis
|
| Synonyms | |
|
|
Indolestes gracilis is a type of damselfly. It belongs to the Lestidae family. You can find this damselfly only in Sri Lanka, South India, and Cambodia.
Contents
Different Types of Indolestes gracilis
This damselfly has three main types, called subspecies. They are a bit different depending on where they live.
- Indolestes gracilis gracilis lives in Sri Lanka.
- Indolestes gracilis davenporti is found in South India.
- Indolestes gracilis expressior makes its home in Cambodia.
There was another type, Indolestes gracilis birmanus, found in Myanmar. But now scientists think it's its own separate species. It's called Indolestes birmanus.
What Indolestes gracilis Looks Like
This damselfly is a medium-sized insect. It has bright blue eyes.
Body Colors and Markings
Its main body part, called the thorax, is black on top. It has a thin blue stripe down the middle. There are also wide blue stripes on its shoulders. The black part on its sides looks like a saw's teeth. Below this, the sides are a bright sky-blue color.
Its wings are clear, so you can see through them. They have a small, dark spot called a pterostigma. This spot can be black or dark reddish-brown.
The long part of its body, the abdomen, is sky-blue on the sides. It has a wide black stripe on top. This black stripe goes up to about the middle of segment 9. The end of segment 9 and all of segment 10 are sky-blue. Each side of segment 10 has a small black spot. The parts at the very end of its body, called anal appendages, are blue. But in older males, these parts turn black.
Female Damselflies
Female Indolestes gracilis look very much like the males. The main differences are the color of their eyes and the colors of their last body segments. For example, segment 9 on a female is black.
Where Indolestes gracilis Lives
These damselflies live in different places depending on their subspecies.
- Indolestes gracilis gracilis lives in the hilly areas of Sri Lanka. You can find them up to 6,000 feet high.
- Indolestes gracilis davenporti is found in South India. They live in the Western Ghats mountains, between 4,000 and 6,000 feet high. This area is south of a place called the Palakkad Gap.
- Indolestes gracilis expressior lives in the evergreen forests of eastern Cambodia. They are found at heights from 1,600 to 4,500 feet.
Images for kids
-
Male
-
Female
-
Young male
-
Tandem pair
See also
- List of odonates of Sri Lanka
- List of odonates of India
- List of odonata of Kerala
