''Argia'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

damselflies 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 ...

of 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 ...

and of the subfamily Argiinae. It is a diverse

which contains about 114 species and many more to be described. It is also the largest genus in Argiinae. They are found in the Western Hemisphere. They are commonly known as ''dancers''. Although the genus name comes from grc, ἀργία, argia, laziness, dancers are quite active and alert damselflies. The bluer ''Argia'' species may be confused with '' Enallagma'' species.

Characteristics

This genus of damselflies are known as dancers because of the distinctive jerky form of flight they use which contrasts with the straightforward direct flight of bluets,

forktail The forktails are small insectivorous birds in the genus ''Enicurus''. They were formerly in the thrush family, Turdidae, but are more often now treated as part of the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae. Their name derives from their lo ...

s and other pond damselflies. They are usually to be seen in the open where they catch flying insects on the wing rather than flying about among vegetation picking off sedentary

prey Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill the ...

items. They tend to land and perch flat on the ground, logs and rocks. When perched, they usually hold their wing slightly raised above the abdomen. The males of most species are some combination of black and blue but they can easily be told from similarly coloured bluets by their mode of flight. Some species have red eyes and others a copper-coloured thorax. Many species have humeral stripes, either notched or forked at the end or narrowed in the centre. The wings have short petioles and are relatively broad close to the base. Unlike most of the Coenagrionidae, dancers are often associated with flowing water. Amber-winged dancer (Argia adamsi) male

Black-and-purple dancer (Argia oculata) male purple form

Species

The genus includes the following species: Additionally a fossil member of this genus is known from the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

Mexican amber Mexican amber, also known as Chiapas Amber is amber found in Mexico, created during the Early Miocene and middle Miocene epochs of the Cenozoic Era in southwestern North America. As with other ambers, a wide variety of taxa have been found as inc ...

Notes

References

* * * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q2187494 Coenagrionidae Taxa named by Jules Pierre Rambur Zygoptera genera