Sympetrum danae
• English name: Black Darter
• German name: Schwarze Heidelibelle
• French name: Sympétrum noir
• Dutch name: Zwarte heidelibel
• Swedish name: Svart ängstrollslända
• Norwegian name: Svart høstlibelle
• Finnish name: Tummasyyskorento
• Danish name: Sort hedelibel
• Italian name: Cardinale nero
• Czech name: vážka tmavá
• Slovenian name: Črni kamenjak
• Bulgarian name: N/A
Sympetrum danae
Not present
Present before 1990
Present after 1990
Present before and after 1990
Present after 2015
Map data based on J.-P. Boudot & V. J. Kalkman (eds.),
Atlas of the European Dragonflies and Damselflies
| General | • a very small species of central and (north-)eastern Europe | |
| Classification | • suborder: Anisoptera (dragonflies); family: Libellulidae | |
| Conservation status | • IUCN Red List Europe: Least Concern | |
| Scientific name | • Sympetrum danae (Sulzer, 1776) | |
| Name genus | • Sympetrum: from Grk. συμπιέζω = to squeeze together +; ἦτρον = abdomen ⇒ Newman described Sympetrum species as having the 'abdomen laterally compressed' (as distinct from Orthetrum species, which have the 'abdomen laterally parallel') | |
| Name species | • danae: after Δανάη, daughter of Akrisios and mother of Perseus in Greek mythology | |
| Distribution | • click or tap the Map button above | |
| Habitat | • bog ponds and moors | |
| Dimensions | • typical body length: 29-34 mm; hindwing: 20-30 mm | |
| Notes | • libellulids are 'sitters': males spend a lot of time perched at the water's edge, waiting for females | |
| • all European Sympetrum species oviposit in tandem | ||
| ➤ the only Sympetrum species in Europe whose male does not have any red on the abdomen | ||
| Both sexes | Wings | • the pterostigma is black |
| Legs | ➤ the legs are all black | |
| Male | Thorax | • the thorax is black with, on the side, two large yellow bands; the third band (in the middle) is black with three yellow spots; in mature males this yellow colour darkens to a dull brown |
| Abdomen | ➤ the abdomen is black with yellow spots on top; in mature males this yellow colour darkens to a dull brown | |
| Female | Thorax | • the top of the thorax is yellow/brown with a black triangle |
| • the side of the thorax is black with two large yellow bands; the third band (in the middle) is black with three yellow spots; in old females this yellow colour may darken to a dull brown | ||
| Abdomen | • the underside of the abdomen is black, while the top is yellow; in old females this yellow colour may darken to a dull brown | |
| ➤ the large vulvar scale sits perpendicular to the abdomen | ||
| Photographs | • our photos below were made in northern Italy, Bavaria, Finland and the Netherlands |
