Ebony Jewelwing damselfly (female)

Two members of Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies) can be found in Fairfax County, Virginia USA: American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana); and Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata). Ebony Jewelwing seems to be more common than American Rubyspot in Fairfax County.

08 JUN 2020 | Fairfax County, VA | Ebony Jewelwing (female)

The preceding photo of an Ebony Jewelwing is one of my “warm-up shots” from a recent photowalk with Michael Powell at a location in Fairfax County, Virginia USA.

This individual is a female. A simple field mark may be used to differentiate female and male Ebony Jewelwing: females feature white pterostigmata; males don’t.

Related Resources

• American Rubyspot – range map and adult flight period for select states
• Ebony Jewelwing – range map and adult flight period for select states

Copyright © 2020 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Denizen of the seep

An Ebony Jewelwing damselfly (Calopteryx maculata) was spotted near a forest seep located in Occoquan Regional Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. This individual is a male, as indicated by the absence of white pterostigma — a field mark used to identify females of the same species.

01 JUN 2019 | Occoquan Regional Park | Ebony Jewelwing (male)

Look for Ebony Jewelwing beginning in late-May/early-June along almost any small- to mid-size forest stream in Northern Virginia (USA).

Ebony Jewelwing is a member of Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies). American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana) is the only other species of Broad-winged Damselfly found in Northern Virginia.

Adult flight period

According to records for the Commonwealth of Virginia maintained by Dr. Steve Roble, Staff Zoologist at the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Natural Heritage, the adult flight period for C. maculata is from April 27 to October 06. The species is classified as common. Its habitat is “streams, rivers.”

Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (mating pair)

A mating pair of Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (Calopteryx maculata) was spotted near a small forest stream at Occoquan Regional Park. The male is shown on the left; the female on the right.

24 JUN 2018 | Occoquan Regional Park | Ebony Jewelwing (mating pair)

The damselflies are “in wheel,” in which the male uses “claspers” (terminal appendages) at the end of his abdomen to hold the female by her neck/thorax while they are joined at their abdomens. The wheel position is sometimes referred to as “in heart” when damselflies mate.

24 JUN 2018 | Occoquan Regional Park | Ebony Jewelwing (mating pair)

Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Ebony Jewelwing damselfly (male)

Look for Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (Calopteryx maculata) beginning in late-May/early-June along almost any small- to mid-size forest stream in Northern Virginia (USA).

04 JUN 2018 | Occoquan Regional Park | Ebony Jewelwing (male)

This individual is a male, as indicated by the all-black coloration of his wings and by his terminal appendages.

Ebony Jewelwing is a member of Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies). American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana) is the only other species of Broad-winged Damselfly found in Northern Virginia.

Related Resource: The adult flight period for Ebony Jewelwing is from April 27 to October 06, according to records for the Commonwealth of Virginia maintained by Dr. Steve Roble, a zoologist at the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Division of Natural Heritage.

Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

How to Identify Damselfly Exuviae to Family

There are four families of damselflies (Suborder Zygoptera) in the United States of America, although only three families occur in the mid-Atlantic region: Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies); Family Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies); and Family Lestidae (Spreadwings).

Pattern recognition can be used to tentatively identify damselfly larvae/exuviae to the family level: the shape of the prementum is characteristic for each of the three families; mnemonics can be used to remember each distinctive shape.

Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies)

Family Calopterygidae features a prementum with a shape that looks somewhat similar to Family Coenagrionidae. Look for an embedded raindrop shape, located toward the upper-center of the prementum.

An Ebony Jewelwing damselfly (Calopteryx maculata) exuvia was collected along a small stream located in eastern Fairfax County, Virginia USA.

Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies) | prementum

Family Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies)

The shape of the prementum for Family Coenagrionidae reminds me of a keystone.

A Narrow-winged Damselfly exuvia — probably Argia sp. (it’s a work in progress) — was collected along the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia USA. This individual is a female, as indicated by the rudimentary ovipositor located on the ventral side of her abdomen.

Family Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies) | ventral

The lamellae, also known as caudal lamellae, are external structures used by damselfly larvae for both respiration and locomotion. In contrast, the respiratory system for dragonfly larvae is internal. Characteristics of the caudal lamellae (including shape of/patterns on) are some of the clues that can be used to identify damselflies to the genus/species level.

Family Lestidae (Spreadwings)

The unique shape of the prementum for Family Lestidae reminds me of a rattle (musical instrument).

A damselfly exuvia from the Family Lestidae (Spreadwings) was collected from a small vernal pool located in eastern Fairfax County, Virginia USA. Although the genus/species is unknown (again, it’s a work in progress), both Slender Spreadwing (Lestes rectangularis) adults and Southern Spreadwing (Lestes australis) adults were observed at the vernal pool on the same day this specimen was collected.

Family Lestidae (Spreadwings) | prementum

Related Resources

The first step is the hardest, as the saying goes. In this case, it’s easier to identify damselfly larvae/exuviae to the family level than it is to identify specimens to the genus/species level. There are relatively few resources, especially online resources. The following links to two dichotomous keys and a pattern-matching guide for caudal lamellae should help you get started. Many of the same species of damselflies that are known to occur in Michigan, Florida, and the Carolinas can be found in the mid-Atlantic region.

• Odonata Nymphs of Michigan, by Ethan Bright and Mark F. O’Brien. Follow links to Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies); Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies); and Lestidae (Spreadwings).
• Identification Manual for the Damselfly Nymphs (Zygoptera) of Florida, by Johnny S. Richardson
• Caudal Lamellae of Carolina Zygoptera, by Lynn Erckmann

Copyright © 2017 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (male, female)

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata) is a member of the Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged damselflies). They are common from May to July along wooded slow-moving streams such as Dogue Creek in Wickford Park.

Male

All male damselflies have four terminal appendages, collectively called “claspers.” Male damselfly terminal appendages don’t look exactly the same for all species of damselflies, but their function is identical.

Claspers are used to grab and hold female damselflies during mating: an upper pair of cerci (“superior appendages”) and a lower pair of paraprocts (“inferior appendages”).

05 AUG 2015 | Wickford Park | Ebony Jewelwing (male)

The preceding image also shows the male hamules, …

paired structures that project from pocket under the second segment [S2] and hold female abdomen in place during copulation. Source Credit: Glossary [of] Some Dragonfly Terms, by Dennis R. Paulson.

After a male damselfly grabs a female with his claspers, he transfers sperm from the genital opening under the ninth abdominal segment (S9) to his hamules, located beneath the second abdominal segment (S2). Next the pair forms the mating wheel, then the male transfers sperm from his hamules to the female through her genital pore under the eighth abdominal segment (S8).

06 JUN 2015 | HMP | Ebony Jewelwing (mating pair, in wheel)

The copulatory, or wheel, position is unique to the Odonata, as is the distant separation of the male’s genital opening and copulatory organs. That the position looks as much like a heart as a wheel has been noted. Source Credit: Paulson, Dennis (2011-12-19). Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East (Princeton Field Guides) (Kindle Locations 377-378). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.

Female

A simple field mark may be used to differentiate male and female Ebony Jewelwings: females feature white pterostigmata (see below); males don’t.

05 AUG 2015 | Wickford Park | Ebony Jewelwing (adult female)

The preceding annotated image illustrates some of the reproductive anatomy of a female Ebony Jewelwing: a cercus (pl. cerci), one of two superior appendages that have little or no function; a stylus (pl. styli), one of two structures that serve as sensors in egg positioning; and an ovipositor that is used to insert eggs into submerged vegetation (endophytic oviposition). Notice the mud on the tip of the female’s abdomen, indicating she laid eggs recently.

Copyright © 2015 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

Ebony Jewelwing damselfy (female)

An Ebony Jewelwing damselfly (Calopteryx maculata) spotted during a photowalk through “Paul Spring Park,” one of seven small parks owned and maintained by the Community Association of Hollin Hills (CAHH), Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The individual shown in the preceding photo gallery is a female, as indicated by its dull brown body and smoky wings with bright white spots near the wingtips. (Males have metallic green bodies and opaque black wings.)

The Ebony Jewelwing is one of eight species of broad-winged damselflies, a family of medium-size damselflies that have butterfly-like flight. Like all broad-winged damselflies, Ebony Jewelwing damselflies are usually found along small creeks and streams, near the water.

Related Resources:

• Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (one of my recent Posterous posts)
• Walking Tour of CAHH Parks

Tech Tips: Photo 1 of 2 is a copy of the original photograph, cropped to highlight the damselfly; Photo 2 of 2 is the original photograph. Photo 1 was cropped and edge sharpened using Apple “Aperture,” a professional-grade tool for organizing and adjusting photos. Apple “Preview” was used to annotate Photo 1 to highlight the bright white spots near the damselfly’s wingtips.

Ebony Jewelwing damselfies

Several Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (Calopteryx maculata) spotted during a photowalk through the “Wildlife Sanctuary,” one of seven small parks owned and maintained by the Community Association of Hollin Hills (CAHH), Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The individuals shown in the preceding photo gallery are males, as indicated by their metallic green bodies and opaque black wings. (Females have dull brown bodies and smoky wings with bright white spots near their wingtips.)

The Ebony Jewelwing is one of eight species of broad-winged damselflies, a family of medium-size damselflies that have butterfly-like flight. Like all broad-winged damselflies, Ebony Jewelwing damselflies are usually found along small creeks and streams, near the water.

Related Resources:

• “Dragonflies & Damselflies – An Introduction to Familiar, Widespread North American Species” — a very handy pocket field guide to dragonflies and damselflies, including the Ebony Jewelwing
• Walking Tour of CAHH Parks