''Agriocnemis pieris'', white dartlet, is a species of
damselfly
Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along ...
in the family
Coenagrionidae
The insect family Coenagrionidae is placed in the order Odonata and the suborder Zygoptera.
The Zygoptera are the damselflies, which although less known than the dragonflies, are no less common. More than 1,300 species are in this family, making i ...
. It is found in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and is likely to extend into
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
.
Description and habitat
It is a slender, small damselfly but very conspicuous with its bluish white color with dorsal black spots. Its eyes are pale blue with a black cap, thorax is black on dorsum and pale blue on the sides. Its abdomen is pale blue, deepening on the last four segments. They are marked with black on dorsum up to segment 8. '' Agriocnemis lacteola'' lacks these dorsal black marks on segments 4 to 10 of the abdomen. Female is similar to the male; but more robust and the blue is more dark. Its abdomen is marked with black up to segment 9. There is a narrow longitudinal lateral stripe of blue on segment 8. The females of this species exhibit
sexual mimicry Sexual mimicry occurs when one sex mimics the opposite sex in its behavior, appearance, or chemical signalling. It is more commonly seen within invertebrate species, although sexual mimicry is also seen among vertebrates such as spotted hyenas. Sexu ...
. One group mimics the males’ colour (androchromes). Other groups will have their own female colouration (gynochromes).
It breeds in marshes and wet grasslands.
File:Agriocnemis pieris female red form at kadavoor.jpg, Female (gynochrome)
File:Agriocnemis pieris by kadavoor.JPG, Mating pair (female gynochrome)
File:Agriocnemis pieris mating in Kadavoor.jpg, Mating pair (female androchrome)
See also
*
List of odonates of India
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...