The tule bluet (''Enallagma carunculatum'') is a species of

damselfly Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies (which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Epiprocta) but are usually smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the win ...

in the family

Coenagrionidae Coenagrionidae is a family of damselflies, also known as pond damselflies, in the order Odonata and the suborder Zygoptera. The Zygoptera are the damselflies, which although less known than the dragonflies, are no less common. More than 1,300 spec ...

found in North America, from northern Mexico to southern Canada.

Identification

The damselfly has a blue and black

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the gut, belly, tummy, midriff, tucky, or stomach) is the front part of the torso between the thorax (chest) and pelvis in humans and in other vertebrates. The area occupied by the abdomen is called the abdominal ...

, usually with more black than blue. The black

humeral The humerus (; : humeri) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of ...

stripes are about a half the width of the blue antehumerals. The tule bluet postocular spots are small and triangular; they are separated by a thin

occipital The occipital bone () is a cranial dermal bone and the main bone of the occiput (back and lower part of the skull). It is trapezoidal in shape and curved on itself like a shallow dish. The occipital bone lies over the occipital lobes of the cere ...

bar.

Size

This bluet is long.

Distribution

The tule bluet is found throughout North America from southern Canada to northern Mexico, excluding the southeastern United States.

Habitat

The following is the list of habitats of the tule bluet. *rivers *lakes *ponds *marshes *bogs They occur where there are bulrushes around.

Flight season

Mid-May to mid-September. It can also be during early July to mid-October.

Diet

*Nymphs: nymphs eat a large variety of aquatic insects, they include mosquito larvae, mayfly larvae, and other aquatic insect larvae. *Adults: adult tule bluet feed on a wide variety small flying insects, mayflies, flies, small moths, and mosquitoes. They sometimes pick up small insects from plants like aphids.

Ecology

The tule bluet is found almost always where there are extensive stands of

tule ''Schoenoplectus acutus'' ( syn. ''Scirpus acutus, Schoenoplectus lacustris, Scirpus lacustris'' subsp. ''acutus''), called tule , common tule, hardstem tule, tule rush, hardstem bulrush, or viscid bulrush, is a giant species of sedge in the p ...

s. This is how this bluet gets its common name. The damselfly will emerge from relatively deep water if there are bulrushes nearby. The tule bluet can be also found in

alkaline In chemistry, an alkali (; from the Arabic word , ) is a basic salt of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. An alkali can also be defined as a base that dissolves in water. A solution of a soluble base has a pH greater than 7.0. The ...

or salty water.

Reproduction

The male damselflies set up territories at choice breeding sites. After males and females have mated, the male stays attached to the female, as she oviposits in the stems of bulrushes. They are in their

tandem Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which two or more animals, machines, or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction. ''Tandem'' can also be used more generally to refer to any group of persons or objects w ...

position.

Conservation

The populations of the tule bluet are widespeard, abundant, and secure.

References

Tule BluetTule Bluet - Enallagma carunculatumDamselfly - Enallagma carunculatum - BugGuide.Net
* Lam, E. (2004) ''Damselflies of the Northeast''. Forest Hills, NY:Biodiversity Books. p. 65. {{Taxonbar, from=Q144043 Coenagrionidae Odonata of North America Insects of Canada Insects of Mexico Insects of the United States Fauna of the Eastern United States Fauna of the Western United States Insects described in 1895