The orange-spotted emerald (''Oxygastra curtisii'') is a

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

Corduliidae The Corduliidae, also knowns as the emeralds, emerald dragonflies or green-eyed skimmers, is a family of dragonflies. These dragonflies are usually black or dark brown with areas of metallic green or yellow, and most of them have large, emerald-gr ...

. It is the only species in its

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 ...

. The orange-spotted emerald is about long. It has bright green eyes and a bronzy-green body with yellow spots along the top of the

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 last segment of the abdomen (S10) has a prominent yellow mark on the upper surface. The species occurs in much of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

but is regionally extinct in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. Its habitat is slow flowing streams, pools and ponds.

Status in Britain

This species was only ever known from two areas in southern

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, one around the River Stour and

Moors River The Moors River is a river in east Dorset, England, which starts at the point where the River Crane and the Ebblake Stream meet, at Ebblake, south of Verwood. It runs south then southeast, past Bournemouth International Airport and Hurn to j ...

in east

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

, where the species was recorded from 1820 to 1963, and the other on the

River Tamar The Tamar (; kw, Dowr Tamar) is a river in south west England, that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A part of the Tamar Valley is a World Heritage Site due to its historic mining activities. T ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

where the species was recorded in 1946 only. It went extinct due to sewage pollution in rivers.

Habitat

This species lives in fresh water streams and rivers, with muddy or sandy beds. Where it lives today, it is still continually threatened by poor water quality. The nymphs are found on the banks of rivers, where they hide amongst leaf litter. Despite being regionally extinct in the UK and the Netherlands, they are still widespread throughout Europe,

References

4. Wildlife and countryside. https://www.wcl.org.uk/wanted-the-orange-spotted-emerald-stolen-from-future-generations.asp. Retrieved 5 January 2021. Dragonflies of Europe Corduliidae {{dragonfly-stub