''Palaemnema'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

damselflies 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 Platystictidae. They are commonly known as shadowdamsels and are found in the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

, from Arizona to Peru and French Guiana.

Characteristics

Members of this genus are quite diverse. They reside in dense shade near streamlets that trickle though tropical forests. The majority are black with blue markings, though some are entirely black. They mostly have a blue

thorax The thorax (: thoraces or thoraxes) or chest is a part of the anatomy of mammals and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main di ...

and a blue tip to the abdomen and are similar in size to large pond damsels. The

prothorax The prothorax is the foremost of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the first pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the pronotum (dorsal), the prosternum ( ventral), and the propleuron (lateral) on ...

is large and the legs long. Males have forceps-shaped cerci (appendages at the tip of the abdomen).

Species

The genus contains the following species:

References

Platystictidae Taxa named by Edmond de Sélys Longchamps Zygoptera genera Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Coenagrionoidea-stub