River Jewelwing Damselfly, By Reinke

Photo by John Reinke

The River Jewelwing is the largest damselfly found in Washington state.  It is most commonly sighted in June and July, along rivers and streams.  Indeed, I spotted this one along a recently dried up stream that drains into the north end of Lake Sammamish.  It's the first one of its kind that I've ever seen, so I felt fortunate to photograph it.

The dark patches on the wings indicate it is a male, about two inches long.  Note that the thorax is a brilliant metallic green that shades into an equally brilliant metallic blue covering the long abdomen.  The thorax contains the muscles that control the four wings, which all damselflies have.  The wings are typically folded close together back above the abdomen when the damselfly is perched.

Also observe the spiky hairs that extend outward from the six legs. (They're hard to see.) They all angle down and may help to clasp prey caught in mid-flight.

-- John Reinke