All damselflies are predatory and they eat other insects. They are great hunters due to their keen eyesight and incredible maneuverability.

Select this link for a Field Checklist on Damselflies of Houston & Harris County.

Damselflies and dragonflies both belong to the insect order Odonata. More than 77 species of damselflies have been found in Texas. Damselflies have three body regions: a head, a thorax (with their two sets of wings and six legs attached) and an abdomen. The abdomens are long and variously colored depending on the species. They are found on every continent except Antarctica.

Knowing the characteristics of damselflies and dragonflies will help in identifying the insect. The eyes of a damselfly are large and clearly separated, usually protruding to each side of the head, in a “barbell” shape. The body of a damselfly is usually long and slender and its forewings and hindwings are similar in size and shape and are membranous in appearance. A damselfly will hold its wings together in a closed position, usually above the abdomen when they are at rest. In many species of damselflies the males are often more brightly-colored than the females.

In short, the easiest way to tell whether the odonate you are looking at is a dragonfly or damselfly is to look at how it holds its wing while resting. If they are lying flat, parallel to the ground, you are looking at a dragonfly. If the wings are pressed together, held over the insects back, you are looking at a damselfly. While all four wings of damselflies are the same size and shape, dragonflies on the other hand, have broader hind wings than the forewings. Dragonflies are almost always flying and damselflies are almost always perching.

But why are damselflies and dragonflies in this nature preserve? TLCNP has close to 2 acres of wetlands within and is close to White Oak bayou and channels that feed White Oak bayou. Thus slow moving water is within a half mile of and ephemeral wetlands can be found within TLCNP.

When searching for dragonflies and damselflies, look for as many different aquatic habitats as possible. Their presence on a body of water indicates that it is relatively unpolluted. However, their dependence on fresh, unpolluted water makes them vulnerable to the decline of wetlands.

Visit this link for general information on Texas damselflies from Texas Parks and Wildlife. Select this link for a Field Checklist on Damselflies of Houston & Harris County.

Below are some of the damselflies that can be seen at THE LORRAINE CHERRY NATURE PRESERVE.

American Rubyspot

1-1/2 to 1-3/4 inches in length. The American Rubyspot habitat is wide, open streams and rivers. They often perch on twigs and leaves both near the shore and in the water. Interestingly the females are often seen perched higher than the males.

The males are large with an iridescent red head and thorax. The females are largely iridescent green but with wing color duller than the male. This species of damselfly is alert and fast-flying during the summer.

Blue-fronted Dancer

1-1/4 to 1-5/8 inches in length. This damselfly can be found near streams, ponds and along riverbanks. They are active throughout the summer. The head and thorax of the males are mostly blue with fine black lines down the middle and the shoulder of the thorax. Like other species of the genus Argia, these damselflies perform a bouncing flight as if they were dancing over plants and water. Thus they are known by the common name "dancer".

The male will defend territories up to 6.7 feet in diameter against other males, including males of other species of damselflies.

Citrine Forktail

3/4 to 1 inch in length. The Citrine Forktail habitat is dense vegetation along still waters such as ponds, wetlands or temporary bodies of water. Citrine refers to its overall yellowish coloration. They are primarily a summer species in most of their range. It is the smallest damselfly in North America.

Double Striped Bluet

3/4 to 1 -1/4 inches in length. This damselfly's habitat is various permanent and semi-permanent ponds, lakes and reservoirs as well as slow reaches of streams and rivers. The Double-Striped Bluet often perches over water most often from mid-morning to late afternoon.

Its common name is from the peculiar black shoulder stripe, which is divided in two by a thin blue stripe. This is the key identification characteristic; no other damselfly has a shoulder stripe that looks like this one.

Ebony Jewelwing

1-1/2 to 2-1/4 inches in length. This is one of the few broad-wing damselflies. During the summer they can be seen along small, slow moving shady streams or resting on nearby vegetation. They are also known to fly considerable distances from water. The males will guard mating territories and regularly face off with other males flying in slow circles.

This species ranks among the most studied damselflies due to how common and widespread it is in eastern North America. Males and females communicate their location to each other by snapping the wings open and closed. The female will appear similar to the male except slightly duller with browner wings.

Fragile Forktail

1 inch in length. This small damselfly is the first to be seen in spring and the last to be seen in fall. Males are mostly dark iridescent black on top with bright yellow-green markings, including exclamation marks at the shoulders. Females are a deeper blue and have the same exclamation marks.

The prefer ponds with a lot of vegetation and grassy areas alongside still bodies of water. Due to their small size, they are readily hunted by other dragonflies, so they generally stay hidden among vegetation, remaining still and blending well with their environment.

Rambur's Forktails

1 to 1-1/2 inches in length. Rambur's Forktails are active from early spring through fall in Houston. Both males and females prefer habitats with slow moving or still water, vegetation and sunlight. They often fly in open areas and perch on bare ground.

The males do not maintain mating territories. Both males and females prey on small insects. Females will attack and eat other damselflies.

Damselfy Mating

Most insects live a lonely life and only enter into a short-lasting partnership for mating season. Like many animals, male attract females by showing off. In order to convince a female to mate with him, a male has to show how amazing he is by finding a good place for egg laying, setting up a perimeter around that area, and defending the space from other males. Males may spend hours each day flying around defending their territories all in preparation for when a female flies into his territory. The males who defend the best territories tend to get the most girls.

When a female flies into his territory, the male will fly out toward her and try to grab her by her head. The male has a couple of sort of thumbs at the end of his abdomen. The female determines how well the thumbs fit and thus if the male is a good match. If he is successful, he gets a second date.

Mating Common Blue Damselflies.
*Photo by RC Canon.*

The Male needs to get a firm grip because other males might try to steal the female from him. Females can refuse to mate with a male, even after he’s grabbed her. If she’s unwilling, the male will reluctantly let her go. They often fly around together until the female is ready to mate. The male will show off his bright colors to the female. If she is willing to mate then they get busy.

Now all hell breaks loose! Once joined the couple can remain this way from a few seconds to a few hours. There is a lot that must get done.

To transfer sperm to the female, the male has to bring the genitalia at the back end of the female into contact with his genitalia near the base of his thorax, all while maintaining his grip on her head. Think of a Cirque du Soleil act. He curls his abdomen under so that the female is held mostly parallel to his body. She then curls her abdomen up toward his thorax. In the process, they form the “wheel” or “heart” position. Some damselflies species can fly in this position and while others prefer to perch!

Males are super competitive with one another when it comes to females, even at this stage. If he is to be the BMOC of the pond (or stream), he needs to father the most children. If a female has mated with another male before him, there’s a chance that the other male’s sperm is still stored in her sperm storage organ and might fertilize some of his gal’s eggs, even after he’s mated with her himself. No problem! Many male dragonflies have genitalia designed to scoop sperm out of females before he deposits his own. Others do some really amazing things. Some species of damselflies grabs the female and immediately whips her whole body around in a somersault, flinging the sperm from her body in the process! Basically, males are selfish. They want their offspring to be the only offspring in their territories and removing sperm deposited by other males from their mates before transferring their own sperm solves this issue.

Now that the male has successfully held territory, encountered a female, and encouraged her to mate with him and deposit his sperm, there’s only one thing left to do: lay eggs! This occurs soon after mating has completed.

However, there are a lot of males around the pond (or stream) and very few females, so other males may try to grab the female and mate with her before she finishes laying her eggs. If that happens, they’ll remove the freshly deposited sperm and replace it with their own. So a male who just mated with a female often guards her while she lays her eggs. Guarding takes many forms. Some males release their hold on the female and fly above them. Others let the female go, return to their perches, and fly out to fight any potential usurpers. Many species keep their hold on the female until she has finished laying her eggs.

Egg laying habits vary from species to species too. Some species fly over the water and dip their abdomens into the water several times, releasing eggs each time. Some stay in one place, holding onto a rock or piece of vegetation, and lay all of their eggs in one spot. Still others crawl all the way underwater to lay their eggs! There is a lot of variation in egg laying and mate guarding behaviors, but they all accomplish the same thing: ensuring that the eggs a female lays in a territory are mostly those that have been fertilized by the male holding the territory.

Fun Fact: Both damselflies and dragonflies can move their wings independently and can fly both forward and backward with amazing speed. Visit this site to learn more about Odonata species in Texas.

Want even more information on damselflies? TLCNP recommends Damselflies of Texas by John C Abbott. This is the first field guide dedicated specifically to the species found in Texas. It covers 77 of the 138 species of damselflies known in North America, making it a very useful guide for the entire United States. It has illustrations, common and scientific names, distribution maps, identifying characteristics, habitat, seasonality, and general comments.