Belongs to: chasers and darters
Compare with: four-spotted chaser
broad-bodied chaser
Black-tailed skimmer Orthetrum cancellatum
Best time to see: late May to early Aug
Key facts
A fast, highly active dragonfly often seen perched on open ground or on dead trees
Habitat: shallow ponds, lakes, slow rivers, sometimes marshes; early coloniser of gravel pits
Common in southern England, parts of Wales and central Ireland
Recognition
Black-tipped blue abdomen in males, yellow with black bands in females; clear wings
Active species, often seen flying low and fast over open ground or tracks, perching on banks, roads, dead trees and, if warm, plants
Flies from late May to early August, feeding mainly on large insects such as butterflies, grasshoppers or damselflies
Lifecycle
Females lay groups of eggs in jelly into the water so they stick to submerged plants, guarded by the male
Larvae live partly or completely buried in bottom debris, developing in 2–3 years
Larvae climb out of the water in the early morning from May onwards to emerge, sometimes travelling yards from the water
© Pat Allen
© Tony Gunton