All about Common Scarlet-darter

All about Common Scarlet-darter



Crocothémis écarlate et coeur copulatoire

Crocothemis erythraea

– Anisoptera – Crocothemis -Cette magnifique espèce est devenue courante en Europe du sud et de l’est, mais elle nous vient d’Afrique comme le

Trithémis pourpré

– Trithemis annulata – qui est arrivé dans notre pays plus récemment (suivre le lien pour lire son histoire).

Cette libellule peut atteindre 45 mm et mâles et femelles présentent un abdomen assez large. Au premier coup d’œil,on la reconnaît facilement à la ligne dorsale claire entre les ailes et les bandes antéhumérales claires de chaque côté du thorax. Les yeux se touchent au sommet de la tête et sont bordés de bleu clair sur la partie dorsale. A la base des ailes postérieures des deux sexes une grande tache safran, plus petite aux ailes antérieures. Les nervures costales antérieurs sur les ailes du mâle sont rouges.

Femelles et immatures sont jaune d’or, bien que certaines femelles soient rougissantes voire aussi rouges que les mâles.

This magnificent species became common in southern and east Europe but it came originally from Africa like the Violet dropwing -Trithemis annulata – which arrived in our country more recently (follow the link to read its story).This dragonfly is about 45 mm long and both sexes present a rather wide abdomen. It can be easily recognized at first glance by the light dorsal line between wings and the light one on the sides of the thorax. The eyes touch at the top of the head and are bordered with blue at the back. The wings have a saffron-yellow patch at the base, larger on the hindwings. Both pairs of wings have red costal veins. Females and immature are yellow-gold although some females can be as red as males.

Femelle:

LIB Croco D5200G 0211 12062014
Adult female

Mâle immature:

LIB Croco D5200G 0279 12062014
Immature male

Mâles maturant virant au rouge:

Maturing males growing red:

LIB Croco D5200F 9280 070614
Maturing male

LIB Croco D5200F 9386 070614
Maturing male

Jeune adulte avec un coup sur le thorax:

Yound adult with a bruise on the thorax:

LIB Croco D5200F 9242 070614

Mâle mature:

LIB Croco D5200F 6112 120514
Mature male

Photo rare: les cœurs copulatoires chez cette espèce sont très difficiles à photographier, l’accouplement ne durant que 5 secondes environ et le transfert du sperme s’accomplit souvent en vol, comme chez la Libellule à 4 taches, L. quadrimaculata ou la Libellule déprimée, L depressa.

A rare photo: mating wheels of this species are quite difficult to photograph since the fertilization takes only 4 to 6 seconds and happens more usually in flight.

LIB Croco D5200G 0033 12062014
Crocothemis erythraea – Mating wheel

Très utiles, les libellules dévorent un très grand nombre d’insectes et arrivent à écarter le labre et le labium considérablement pour laisser les mandibules mieux saisir la proie, l’immobiliser et pouvoir éventuellement s’envoler avec sans la lâcher. Celle-ci est fermement maintenue dans l’étau des 6 pattes ce qui permet au prédateur de commencer par couper les ailes.
Cette observation est naturellement plus aisée chez l’anisoptère * que chez le zygoptère *:

Dragonflies are very useful to limit the numbers of other insects et manage to separate labrum and labium wide enough for the mandibles to seize the prey strongly and eventually fly off with it. The latter is firmly maintained between the 6 legs which allows the predator to first cut the wings off:

LIB Croco D5200F 9878T 12062014
Crocothemis erythraea, predating a daddy long leg

LIB Croco D5200F 9884 12062014

If you enjoy dragonflies, here under a link to indispensable blog:

Le blog incontournable des passionnés:

Libellules de France et d’Ailleurs – Dragonfly World

Noushka Wildlife

Noushka

Passionate about Nature and photography but mostly animals and birds. I live in France at the present, but have lived in Africa for 16 years and in the U.S. for 3 years and with Australia in mind for the future. With my husband, I created and managed a Bird Park in South Africa, raising mainly psittacines; the breeding facility housed over 1000 parrots at any given time. My photography is about sharing fauna's beauty with other enthusiasts! Equipment: NIKON lenses: 400 mm Z F4/5, 800 mm Z, 500 mm, 200/500 mm, 800 mm f5/6E

Dive in!

Discover hidden wildlife with our FREE newsletters

We promise we’ll never spam! Read our Privacy Policy for more info

Noushka Wildlife

Noushka Wildlife

Passionate about Wildlife, Photography and Wildlife issues. I live in the south of France at the present, but have lived in Africa for 16 years, in the U.S. for 3 years. With my husband, I created and managed a BIRD PARK in South Africa, raising mainly psittacines; the breeding facility housed over 1000 parrots at any given time. I speak French and English alike and manage decently in Spanish. My photography is about sharing fauna's beauty with other enthusiasts! Equipment: ALL NIKON Cameras: D500, D750 Tele lenses: 300 mm, 500 mm, 800 mm f5/6E, Zoom lenses: 16/80 mm, 80/400 mm, 200/500 mm and: Macro 150 Sigma. * * * My work can be seen HERE: http://1000-pattes.blogspot.fr/ * * * NOT ON FACEBOOK

Share this post with your friends




Leave a Reply

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

0 Comments