''Libellula needhami'', or Needham's skimmer, is a species of skimmer in the family of dragonflies known as

Libellulidae The chasers, darters, skimmers, and perchers and their relatives form the Libellulidae, the largest family of dragonflies. It is sometimes considered to contain the Corduliidae as the subfamily Corduliinae and the Macromiidae as the subfamily M ...

. It is found in the

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The IUCN conservation status of ''Libellula needhami'' is "LC", least concern, with no immediate threat to the species' existence. The population is stable. The species is named after the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

James George Needham James George Needham (March 16, 1868 in Virginia, Illinois – July 24, 1957) was an American entomologist. After studying with John Henry Comstock at Cornell University (1896–1898) he taught biology at Lake Forest University (1898–1907). In ...

Description

Males have a red face, while females have a brown or yellow face. This species can be separated from the very similar ''

Libellula auripennis ''Libellula auripennis'', the golden-winged skimmer, is a species of skimmer in the family Libellulidae. It is found in North America. Conservation The IUCN conservation status of ''Libellula auripennis'' is "LC", least concern, with no immediate ...

'' by the following: * their posterior (rear) wing veins do not become orange * their

costa Costa may refer to: Biology * Rib (Latin: ''costa''), in vertebrate anatomy * Costa (botany), the central strand of a plant leaf or thallus * Costa (coral), a stony rib, part of the skeleton of a coral * Costa (entomology), the leading edge of th ...

changes color on opposite sides of the

node In general, a node is a localized swelling (a "knot") or a point of intersection (a vertex). Node may refer to: In mathematics * Vertex (graph theory), a vertex in a mathematical graph *Vertex (geometry), a point where two or more curves, lines ...

: outer half is lighter, inner half is darker * their hind

tibia The tibia (; : tibiae or tibias), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two Leg bones, bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outsi ...

are brown, not black

References

External links

* Libellulidae Articles created by Qbugbot Insects described in 1943 {{libellulidae-stub

Description

References

Further reading

External links