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Orthetrum
Orthetrum is a large genus of dragonflies in the Libellulidae family. They are commonly referred to as skimmers.
The size of adults within the genus ranges from small to large; in Africa, the hindwing ranges in length from 22 to 50 mm. The bodies of adult females and recently emerged males are yellow to brown with black markings; these may facilitate identification of individuals to species level. Mature males, however, develop blue-grey pruinosity over most of their bodies - this makes species identification difficult without the capture of a specimen and inspection of the shape of the hamule.
60 branches of this genus, most-observed first · about 67 known species
Black-tailed Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum cancellatum
Slender Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum sabina
Keeled Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum coerulescens
Blue Marsh Hawk
speciesOrthetrum glaucum
Blue Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum caledonicum
White-tailed Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum albistylum
Common Red Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum neglectum
Southern Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum brunneum
Fiery Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum villosovittatum
Julia Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum julia
Blue-tailed Forest Hawk
speciesOrthetrum triangulare
Brown-backed Red Marsh Hawk
speciesOrthetrum chrysis
Epaulet Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum chrysostigma
Orange Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum testaceum
Slender Blue Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum luzonicum
Greater Blue Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum melania
Long Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum trinacria
Green Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum serapia
Bold Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum stemmale
Two-striped Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum caffrum
Little skimmer
speciesOrthetrum taeniolatum
Crimson-tailed Marsh Hawk
speciesOrthetrum clelia
Broad Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum azureum
Orthetrum japonicum
speciesOrthetrum japonicum
Banded Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum brachiale
Brownwater Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum boumiera
Orthetrum lineostigma
speciesOrthetrum lineostigma
Crimson-tailed Marsh Hawk
speciesOrthetrum pruinosum
Orthetrum internum
speciesOrthetrum internum
Highland Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum machadoi
Little Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum abbotti
Hintz's Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum hintzi
Rosy Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum migratum
Spectacled Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum icteromelas
Orthetrum ransonnetii
speciesOrthetrum ransonnetii
Mangrove Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum poecilops
Robust Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum robustum
Many-celled Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum angustiventre
Orthetrum malgassicum
speciesOrthetrum malgassicum
Woodland Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum monardi
Giant Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum austeni
Yellow-Veined Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum nitidinerve
Guinea Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum guineense
Farmbush Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum microstigma
Lemur Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum lemur
Orthetrum africanum
speciesOrthetrum africanum
Orthetrum aberrans
speciesOrthetrum aberrans
Speckled Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum balteatum
Elusive Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum rubens
Orthetrum camerunense
speciesOrthetrum camerunense
Orthetrum lugubre
speciesOrthetrum lugubre
Orthetrum brevistylum
speciesOrthetrum brevistylum
Orthetrum silvarum
speciesOrthetrum silvarum
Orthetrum borneense
speciesOrthetrum borneense
Ethiopian Skimmer
speciesOrthetrum kristenseni
Orthetrum macrostigma
speciesOrthetrum macrostigma
Orthetrum signiferum
speciesOrthetrum signiferum
Orthetrum austrosundanum
speciesOrthetrum austrosundanum
Andaman Marsh Hawk
speciesOrthetrum andamanicum
Orthetrum saegeri
speciesOrthetrum saegeri
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Orthetrum in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 62071.