Calopterygidae

Calopterygidae
Immature adult male Calopteryx virgo
Adult male Calopteryx virgo
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Odonata
Suborder: Zygoptera
Superfamily: Calopterygoidea
Family: Calopterygidae
Sélys, 1850[1]
Subfamilies
  • Caliphaeinae
  • Calopteryginae
  • Hetaerininae

See text for genera

Calopterygidae is a family of damselflies, in the suborder Zygoptera.[2] They are commonly known as the broad-winged damselflies,[3] demoiselles, or jewelwings.[4] These rather large damselflies have wingspans of 50–80 mm (compared to about 44 mm in the common bluetail damselfly, Ischnura elegans), are often metallic-coloured, and can be differentiated from other damselflies by the broader connection between the wings and the body, as opposed to the abrupt narrowing seen in other damselfly families.[5] The family contains some 150 species.

The Calopterygidae are found on every continent except Antarctica. They live along rivers and streams.[6]

  1. ^ Selys-Longchamps, E. (1850). "Revue des odonates ou libellules d'Europe". Mémoires de la Société Royale des Sciences de Liège (in French). 6: 1-408 [133] – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  2. ^ "Family CALOPTERYGIDAE". Australian Faunal Directory. Australian Biological Resources Study. 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
  3. ^ Calopterygidae. Digital Key to Aquatic Insects of North Dakota. Valley City State University.
  4. ^ Calopterygidae. Archived 2016-10-05 at the Wayback Machine Dragonflies and Damselflies of Ecuador. Electronic Field Guide Project, University of Massachusetts, Boston.
  5. ^ “Broad-Winged Damselflies.” Calopterygidae Family - Broad-Winged Damselflies, https://unsm-ento.unl.edu/Odonata/calo.html.
  6. ^ Córdoba-Aguilar, A. & Cordero-Rivera, A. (2005). Evolution and ecology of Calopterygidae (Zygoptera: Odonata): status of knowledge and research perspectives. Neotrop. Entomol 34(6), 861-879.