Nebraska Dragonflies and Damselflies

Orange Bluet

Enallagma signatum

Hagen, 1861

The Orange Bluet is readily identified in the field because it isn't blue. The male is slender, with an orange thorax and orange abdominal segment 9. The remainder of the abdomen is mostly black. The females may be blue, yellow or green, with markings similar to the male's. The female has a dark triangular spot on the top of abdominal segment 9.

Fairly common. This is an eastern species with Nebraska on the extremenorthwestern edge of range. Nebraska records are from the eastern two-thirds of state. This is a pond and lake species usually notactive until late afternoon or evening, when it may suddenlybecome abundant on a pond where it was absent two hours earlier.It is almost certainly more widespread than the records indicate asfinding it often requires a special trip at dusk.

Green indicates accepted county record (specimen or photograph).
Yellow indicates sight record only.