Common Bluet

Description:

A North American cousin of the Common Blue Damselfly (European). The male possess a brilliant cobalt blue body while females possess a subtle dusty brown.

Habitat:

The common blue damselfly is commonly found in the vicinity of stagnant water. It flies back and forth, low over the surface. The abdomen of the male is blue with black spots. The female is more yellowish, blue with black markings and the back side underneath the last segment is pointed. The dark spot in the wings is diamond-shaped. Common blue damselflies are found just about everywhere, including the wadden region, along the dune coastline and in the delta region.

Notes:

I observed roughly dozen of this species (6 pairs male/female) flitting around a small area in the desert of primarily sage bushes. Nearest water source is a horse ranch 100 yards away though all observed bleuts stayed in the area during my observations. Most of the bluets were a startlingly brilliant blue but some were observed to have a brown tint to the center of their thorax and a dustier blue tone (shown).