Common Blue Damselfly

Enallagma cyathigerum

There is nothing more calming and more beautiful than taking a pleasant stroll along the river bank on a fine summer’s morning. This striking blue damselfly from the family of dragonflies called Coenagrionidae, which are the Narrow-winged dragonflies, caught my eye. After a few minutes of playing hard to get, it finally settled down and kindly allowed me a fairly long photo session with it.

Please click on the images for a larger view.

The males are bright blue, where the females occur as blue or dull green. Both sexes have broad blue stripes on the thorax which help readily identify the species. Similar to other blue damselflies and the White-legged Damselfly. Body length 32mm. Forewing 20mm. 

The eggs are laid in surface vegetation, and after hatching, the larvae live amongst aquatic vegetation before emerging as adults one or more years later.

Flies May to September, and are found in a wide range of habitats with either sill or flowing water such as ponds, rivers and lakes. The most abundant and widespread of all the dragonflies in the UK.

Photographs taken June 2016, local river, Staffordshire.