Willow maid
| Willow maid | ||||||||||||
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Willow damsel ( Chalcolestes viridis ), female |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Chalcolestes viridis | ||||||||||||
| ( Vander Linden , 1825) |
The willow maiden also common willow maiden ( Chalcolestes viridis ), western willow maiden or large rush maiden is a kind of dragonfly whose German name goes back to the preferred egg-laying place of this species. The scientific taxon Chalcolestes is considered by many authors only as a subgenus of the bins Virgin ( Leste considered). The maiden willow prefer to lay their eggs on willow branches that protrude over water . After hatching, the larvae fall on the surface of the water and develop further in the water.
features
The body length is 40 to 50 millimeters, the wingspan 50 to 60 millimeters. The body of the young is green metallic. With increasing age, the color changes to copper or bronze tones. The wing marks bordered by dark veins are white in young animals and monochrome light ocher to light brown in older animals. A characteristic feature is a pointed tip in the lateral chest drawing .
Habitat, way of life
Maidenheads occur in stagnant and slowly flowing waters in whose immediate bank vegetation there are softwood tree species such as willow, alder , poplar or buckthorn . Branches that protrude above the water surface are preferred for laying eggs, but are not mandatory.
The distribution area extends over western, southwest (up to Italy) and central Europe. The species is absent in Northern and Eastern Europe. The species has been recorded in Great Britain since 2009.
The species lives predatory and feeds mainly on small insects. Their aquatic larvae hunt down small aquatic organisms such as other insect larvae or small crustaceans.
Reproduction, individual development
With the help of the ovipositor , the female digs around 200 eggs into the bark of branches of various softwood tree species. The eggs are laid in tandem or, in the evening as the activity subsides, also by the females alone. The eggs overwinter in the woody bark. In April of the following year, the approximately two millimeter large prolar veins drop onto the surface of the water. As soon as they come into contact with water, they molt into larvae. In the event that the prolvae land on the ground, they are able to hop to move to the water. Within the next two to three months, the larvae in the water reach a length of 30 millimeters after twelve moults and are then fully grown. From the beginning of July, the larvae crawl out of the water on plant stems and moult one last time to become an adult dragonfly. After twelve days, the animals are sexually mature . The flight time of the adult animals lasts until September / October. There is only one generation per year .
literature
Robert, Paul-A .: Die Libellen (Odonaten) - Authorized translation by Otto Paul Wenger [p. 284ff], Kümmerly & Frey, Geographischer Verlag, Bern 1959
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hansruedi Wildermuth, Andreas Martens, Pocket Lexicon of European Dragonflies , Quelle & Meyer, 2014, page 77
- ↑ Rosemarie Steglich, Paul-Ludwig Gentz, Libellenatlas , Landeshauptstadt Magdeburg Umweltamt, 2002, page 26
- ↑ http://www.libelleninfo.de/069lesviri.html
- ↑ https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/species/willow-emerald-damselfly