''Brachydiplax denticauda'' is a species of

dragonfly A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of true dragonfly are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threate ...

in the family

Libellulidae The skimmers or perchers and their relatives form the Libellulidae, the largest dragonfly family in the world. It is sometimes considered to contain the Corduliidae as the subfamily Corduliinae and the Macromiidae as the subfamily Macromiinae. Ev ...

known commonly as the palemouth.''Brachydiplax denticauda''.
Atlas of Living Australia. It is native to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

, and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

. It lives in

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

with still and slow-moving waters. Males of this

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

are typical in colour for the

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 ...

, being bright powder blue on both the

thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the cre ...

and

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

. The labrum is pale cream, thus giving the species its common name of palemouth. In northern

, it is found coastal and adjacent inland in an arc from the southern

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

border to

Broome, Western Australia Broome, also known as Rubibi by the Yawuru people, is a coastal pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, north of Perth. In the the population was recorded as 14,660. It is the largest town in the Kimberley reg ...

Brief Description

This species is small in size with a wingspan of 40 to 60 millimeters. ''Brachydiplax denticauda'' usually has six antenodal crossveins in the fore-wing and five in the hind-wing whereas the very similar '' Brachydiplax duivenbodei'' has seven antenodal crossveins in the fore-wing and six in the hind-wing. Though brightly coloured, the males often go unnoticed by an observer once they land on a lily pad or similar place.

Gallery

Brachydiplax denticauda - Palemouth (female) 0118.jpg, Female Brachydiplax denticauda 5711 ed.jpg, Mature male Palemouth (Brachydiplax denticauda) (23867332788).jpg, An adult male Palemouth has a pale blue tail with a black tip Brachydiplax denticauda male obelisk.jpg, Male puts his tail in the air in an obelisk position that is not vertical Brachydiplax denticauda bum (34146430300).jpg, Male from behind showing a creamy yellow mark on the outside of his eye rim Palemouth close-up of head.jpg, Close-up of head highlighting the pale mouth Palemouth 6266.jpg, Male Brachydiplax denticauda female wings (34215848654).jpg, Female wings Brachydiplax denticauda male wings (34215851744).jpg, Male wings

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1313766 Libellulidae Odonata of Oceania Odonata of Australia Insects of New Guinea Taxa named by Friedrich Moritz Brauer Insects described in 1867