Red-veined Meadowhawk

United States: (Alaska • California • Colorado • Iowa • Idaho • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • North Dakota • Oregon • Washington • Wyoming) Canada: (Alberta • British Columbia • Manitoba • Northwest Territories • Nunavut • Saskatchewan • Yukon)

The naiads of the red-veined meadowhawk live in debris on the bottom of ponds and lakes. Naiads can develop in ephemeral sites. They don't actively pursue prey but will wait for it to pass by, a strategy which affords them protection from other predators. Naiads will emerge as adult dragonflies when it's night. Adults of red-veined meadowhawks are believed to fly mostly from mid-June to mid-September. They also fly at different times of the year. This dragonfly species hunts for flying insects from rocks or bare branches. The genus which red-veined meadowhawks are in which is Sympetrum. This Latin word means "with rock" and refers to their habit of basking on rocks to absorb heat early in the day. This dragonfly seems to be relatively uncommon over most of its distribution. Sympetrum madidum is not the most known of Sympetrum species.