Tramea facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tramea
A Tramea dragonfly from the Galápagos Islands
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Odonata
Infraorder:	Anisoptera
Family:	Libellulidae
Genus:	Tramea Hagen, 1861

Tramea is a group, or genus, of amazing dragonflies. They belong to the family called Libellulidae, which includes many types of "skimmer" and "percher" dragonflies. You can find Tramea dragonflies in warm, sunny places all over the world.

These dragonflies are special because of their back wings. The parts of their back wings closest to their body often have bright colors. The rest of the wing is clear. When they fly, these colored spots look like little bags hanging near their body. This is why they are often called saddlebags or saddlebags gliders.

What Kinds of Tramea Dragonflies Are There?

The Tramea group has many different types of dragonflies. Each type is called a species. Sometimes, a species can even have smaller groups called subspecies. Here are some of the well-known Tramea species:

• Tramea abdominalis (Rambur, 1842) – This one is known as the Vermilion Saddlebags.
• Tramea basilaris (Palisot de Beauvois, 1805) – Also called the Keyhole Glider.
• Tramea binotata (Rambur, 1842) – Known as the Sooty Saddlebags.
• Tramea carolina (Linnaeus, 1763) – This is the Carolina Saddlebags.
• Tramea lacerata Hagen, 1861 – You might know this as the Black Saddlebags.
• Tramea limbata (Desjardins, 1832) – Often called the Ferrugineus Glider.
• Tramea loewii Kaup in Brauer, 1866 – This is the Common Glider.
• Tramea onusta Hagen, 1861 – Known as the Red Saddlebags.
• Tramea stenoloba (Watson, 1962) - The Narrow-lobed Glider.
• Tramea transmarina Brauer, 1867 – This is the Red Glider.

Gallery

The unique markings on the wings of Tramea dragonflies are very cool. They also help scientists tell the different species apart. Take a look at these pictures of their wings!

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  Female Tramea eurybia wings

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  Male Tramea eurybia wings

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  Female Tramea loewii wings

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  Male Tramea loewii wings

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  Female Tramea stenoloba wings

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  Male Tramea stenoloba wings

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  Female Tramea transmarina wings

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  Male Tramea transmarina wings