Beautiful Demoiselle

Calopteryx virgo

The Beautiful Demoiselle is a stunning dragonfly with bright blue or green wings. They flutter around rivers and streams, showing off their beautiful colors to everyone nearby.

Habitat: Wetlands

Appearance

The Beautiful Demoiselle males have a slender, iridescent blue-green body with striking dark, almost black wings that shimmer purple in sunlight. Females are typically a duller bronze-green, featuring translucent brownish wings with a small white spot on each.

KingdomAnimaliaPhylumArthropodaClassInsectaOrderOdonataFamilyCalopterygidaeGenusCalopteryx

Photo: Richard BartzCC BY-SA 2.5 · Wikimedia CommonsView original ↗

Beautiful Demoiselle

Interesting facts

Finding them is a sign that a river or stream has very clean and healthy water.

Male demoiselles perform a graceful, fluttering dance to impress and attract a mate.

Their fierce larvae are ambush hunters, lurking on riverbeds to snatch aquatic prey!

Unlike dragonflies, these damselflies hold their wings together over their back when resting.

Special abilities

Beautiful Demoiselle larvae can breathe underwater using special gills, which helps them survive hidden from predators for years.

Beautiful Demoiselle can quickly change direction and hover in mid-air, allowing them to expertly catch tiny flying insects.

Beautiful Demoiselle's iridescent wings flash bright colours, which helps them signal their presence to other damselflies.

Measurements & details

Wingspan: 60-75 mm
Size: 45-50 mm
Lifespan: 20-60 days
Flight Speed: 8 km/h
Leg Count: 6

Diet & Feeding

Both young and adult Beautiful Demoiselles are skillful hunters of smaller insects, on land and in water.

Age differences: Larvae hunt aquatic insects and small tadpoles underwater, while adults catch flying insects in the air.

Primary Foods

mosquitoes
midges
small flies
mayfly larvae
aquatic worms

Foraging Method

Pursuit

Ecological connections

Eaten by

Grey Wagtail

Motacilla cinerea

Grey Wagtails often snatch them from riverbanks.

Hunts

blood midge

Chironomus plumosus

Larvae of the demoiselle hunt these midge larvae underwater.

Hunts

Yellow Fever Mosquito

Aedes aegypti

Adult demoiselles expertly catch these flying pests in the air.

Depends on

Common Reed

Phragmites australis

They often perch on emergent vegetation along water edges.

Traits

Social

Social animals live in organized groups, cooperating for survival benefits such as foraging, defense, and raising offspring.

Aerial

Aerial creatures spend a significant portion of their lives airborne, utilizing flight for various activities such as hunting, migration, or nesting.

Colorful

Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors.

Insectivorous

This trait identifies organisms whose diet primarily consists of insects and other small invertebrates.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.

Diurnal

Diurnal animals are primarily active during daylight hours, typically resting or sleeping at night.

Freshwater

Freshwater habitats include non-saline aquatic environments such as rivers, lakes, ponds, and wetlands, vital for numerous species.

Speedster

This trait identifies organisms that exhibit exceptional swiftness in movement for hunting, escape, or travel.

Pollinator

Describes organisms that transfer pollen, enabling the fertilization and reproduction of plants.

Also known as

Calopteryx

Collections

Insects

Safety

Danger

1/5 · Very low

Watch them from a distance; they are delicate and like to be left alone.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to identify Beautiful Demoiselle?

Compare wing shape and resting posture, where the eyes sit, body markings and the tail segments. Males and females can look very different in color. Dragonfly Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

What is Beautiful Demoiselle's wingspan?

60-75 mm

How big is Beautiful Demoiselle?

45-50 mm

How long does Beautiful Demoiselle live?

20-60 days

How fast can Beautiful Demoiselle fly?

8 km/h

What does Beautiful Demoiselle eat?

Both young and adult Beautiful Demoiselles are skillful hunters of smaller insects, on land and in water.

Where is Beautiful Demoiselle usually found?

Wetlands