Violet Dropwing (Trithemis annulata)
• English name: Violet Dropwing
• German name: Violetter Sonnenzeiger
• French name: Trithémis annelé
• Dutch name: Purperlibel
• Swedish name: N/A
• Norwegian name: N/A
• Finnish name: N/A
• Danish name: N/A
• Italian name: Obelisco violetto
• Czech name: N/A
• Slovenian name: Ciklamni telovnikar
• Bulgarian name: Виолетово червениче
Violet Dropwing
(Trithemis annulata)
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 small species which occurs mainly in the far south | |
| Classification | • suborder: Anisoptera (dragonflies); family: Libellulidae | |
| Conservation status | • IUCN Red List Europe: Least Concern | |
| Scientific name | • Trithemis annulata (Palisot de Beauvois, 1807) | |
| Name genus | • Trithemis: from Grk. τρίς, τρί- = three times, tri- ⇒ for the tri-lobed hind margin of the prothorax +; Θέμις or θέμις = (Greek Titaness of) divine order, law as established by custom | |
| Name species | • annulata: from Lat. annulatus, -a, -um = adorned with rings; [annulus = ring, ringlet] ⇒ refers to the black front and hind margins of the abdominal segments (Palisot probably had not yet seen other species of the same genus - e.g. Trithemis arteriosa - in which these black margins are actually more obvious) | |
| Distribution | • click or tap the Map button above | |
| Habitat | • small streams but also shallow lakes | |
| Dimensions | • typical body length: 32-38 mm; hindwing: 20-35 mm | |
| Notes | • libellulids are 'sitters': males spend a lot of time perched at the water's edge, waiting for females | |
| • Trithemis species tend to perch with their wings folded forward | ||
| • immature males are coloured like females | ||
| Both sexes | Wings | • the hindwing bears a large orange patch at the base |
| Male | Head | • the frons is metallic purple |
| Thorax | • the thorax is completely purple | |
| Abdomen | ➤ the broad abdomen is purple from S1-S7, while S8-S10 are red with black mid-dorsal spots | |
| Wings | ➤ the veins are red | |
| Female | Thorax | • the thorax is whitish with thick black lines on the side |
| Abdomen | ➤ the abdomen is brown-yellow with large black mid-dorsal spots on S8-S9 | |
| Photographs | • most of our photos below were made in Tuscany and the south of Italy |
LineDrawing: the male's wings in dorsal view and the female's head and thorax in lateral view.
