American rubyspot

American rubyspot
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Odonata
Suborder: Zygoptera
Family: Calopterygidae
Genus: Hetaerina
Species: H. americana
Binomial name
Hetaerina americana
(Fabricius, 1798) [1]
Range of H. americana [2]

The American rubyspot (Hetaerina americana) is a damselfly of the family Calopterygidae. Males have a lustrous red head and thorax. The abdomen of both genders is brilliant green.[3] The female may have either green or copper colored marks on the thorax.[4]

Etymology

The name highlights this damselfly's status as the most widespread of the North American rubyspots.[5] It is reported from all of the lower 48 US states except Washington and Idaho, and is also found in Mexico and southern and eastern Canada.[2]

References

  1. "Hetaerina americana". Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
  2. 1 2 "Distribution Viewer". OdonataCentral. Retrieved December 17, 2009.
  3. Abbott, John C. (2005). Dragonflies and Damselflies of Texas and the South-Central United States. Princeton University Press. p. 25. ISBN 0-691-11364-5.
  4. "Hetaerina americana". BugGuide.Net. Retrieved December 16, 2009.
  5. Paulson, Dennis R; Dunkle, Sidney W (14 April 2009). "A Checklist of North American Odonata": 5.


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