Prodasineura verticalis

Prodasineura verticalis
male
female
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Odonata
Family:	Protoneuridae
Genus:	Prodasineura
Species:	P. verticalis
Binomial name
Prodasineura verticalis (Selys, 1860)

Prodasineura verticalis, mating at Kerala, India

Prodasineura verticalis is a damselfly in the family Protoneuridae. It is commonly known as the black bambootail. The common name bambootail is used for damselflies in the Protoneuridae family in India. The black bambootail is medium size damselfly, its hindwings are about 19–20 mm and the abdomen about 30 mm. The male of this damselfly is mostly black with bright orange stripes on its thorax and small yellow spots on the abdomen. The pterostigma or the wing spot is diamond-shaped and is dark brown in colour. The female is similarly coloured to the male but her thoracic stripes are paler and more yellowish. Male black bambootails are often seen hovering over fast flowing streams when they are rather difficult to see. They are also found along the banks of large ponds and rivers. They usually are sitting among emergent water plants. The oviposition takes place on vegetation or on submerged roots in shallow running water, with the pair in tandem.

Distribution

Prodasineura verticalis can be found in these Asian countries, which are China, Guangxi, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Peninsular Malaysia Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand.

Flight season

The black bambootail is most active through August-December.

Subspecies

This damselfly species has six subspecies. The following are the subspecies.

• Prodasineura verticalis andamanensis
• Prodasineura verticalis annandalei
• Prodasineura verticalis burmanensis
• Prodasineura verticalis delia
• Prodasineura verticalis humeralis (often treated as a distinct species)
• Prodasineura verticalis verticalis

References

• 1.Dragons & Damsels: Prodasineura verticalis
• 2.K.A.Subramanian (2005) Dragonflies and Damselflies of Peninsular India