The cherry-faced meadowhawk (''Sympetrum internum'') 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 ...
of the genus ''
Sympetrum
''Sympetrum'' is a genus of small to medium-sized skimmer dragonflies, known as darters in the UK and as meadowhawks in North America. The more than 50 species predominantly live in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere; no ''Sympet ...
''. It is found across northern and central United States and most of Canada, including southern portions of the Yukon and Northwest Territories. Its abdomen is brown, turning dark red at maturity in both sexes. The sides of the abdomen are marked with black triangles and the legs are black. Some females have amber in basal areas of their wings. As their name suggests, faces are dark red when mature.
[Dunkle, S.W., Dragonflies through Binoculars: A Field Guide to Dragonflies of North America. New York:Oxford University Press, 2000.] Size: .
''Sympetrum internum'' (cherry-faced meadowhawk)
Digital Atlas of Idaho This species overlaps with and is difficult to distinguish from the ruby, saffron-winged, and white-faced meadowhawks.[
]
Similar species
*''Sympetrum costiferum
The saffron-winged meadowhawk (''Sympetrum costiferum'') is a dragonfly of the genus ''Sympetrum''. It is found across northern and central United States and most of Canada, including a southern portion of the Northwest Territories.
Its abdomen ...
'' – saffron-winged meadowhawk
*''Sympetrum obtrusum
The White-faced Meadowhawk (''Sympetrum obtrusum'') is a dragonfly of the genus ''Sympetrum''. It is found in the northern United States and southern Canada. Adult males are identifiable by a distinctive pure white face and red bodies.Dunkle, S.W. ...
'' – white-faced meadowhawk
*''Sympetrum rubicundulum
The ruby meadowhawk (''Sympetrum rubicundulum'') is a species of dragonfly of the family Libellulidae. It is found in northern United States and southern Ontario, Canada. Adult males are identifiable by a distinctive orange to brown face and red ...
'' – ruby meadowhawk
References
External links
Cherry-faced Meadowhawk
Electronic Atlas of the Wildlife of British Columbia
Cherry-faced Meadowhawk - ''Sympetrum internum''
Iowa Odonata Survey
North American Insects and Spiders
Libellulidae
Insects described in 1943
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