Southern Hawker

Aeshna cyanea

The Southern Hawker is a colorful dragonfly with bright green and blue markings. It loves to fly around ponds and gardens, catching small insects in the air.

Habitat: Wetlands

Appearance

The Southern Hawker is a large, robust dragonfly. Males typically have a striking mosaic pattern of blue and apple-green on a black body, while females are usually green and yellow. Its large, iridescent compound eyes meet at the top of its head, providing exceptional vision.

KingdomAnimaliaPhylumArthropodaClassInsectaOrderOdonataFamilyAeshnidaeGenusAeshna

Southern Hawker

Interesting facts

A Southern Hawker's eyes contain nearly 30,000 tiny lenses for incredible sight!

Baby Southern Hawkers live underwater for up to two years before transforming!

Dragonflies have been zipping around Earth since before the dinosaurs!

They can twist and turn in the air, even flying backwards, thanks to their four wings!

Special abilities

Southern Hawker can hover, fly backward, and turn rapidly because of its independently controlled wings that help them catch agile prey.

Southern Hawker has huge compound eyes covering most of its head that helps them spot movement in almost every direction.

Southern Hawker larvae can breathe and hunt underwater using gills that help them ambush aquatic insects and tadpoles.

Measurements & details

Wingspan: 95-110 mm
Size: 70-75 mm
Lifespan: 395-1185 days
Flight Speed: 45 km/h
Leg Count: 6

Diet & Feeding

Southern Hawkers are aerial hunters, catching other flying insects right out of the air!

Age differences: Larvae eat aquatic insects and tadpoles; adults eat flying insects.

Primary Foods

flies
mosquitoes
butterflies
moths
smaller dragonflies

Foraging Method

Pursuit

Ecological connections

hunts

housefly

Musca domestica

Adults actively pursue and eat these flies.

hunts

common mosquito

Culex pipiens

Adults are important predators of mosquitoes.

eaten by

common frog

Rana temporaria

Frog adults and tadpoles can eat dragonfly nymphs.

eaten by

blackbird

Turdus merula

Birds, like blackbirds, sometimes catch adult dragonflies.

Traits

Solitary

Solitary animals live alone for most of their lives, only interacting with others for mating or parental care.

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.