Rhionaeschna is the scientific name
of a genus of dragonflies from the family Aeshnidae. They are also known
as Blue-eyed Darners. The genus contain 41 species.
Rhionaeschna cornigera (Brauer, 1865)
before named as Aeshna cornigera (Brauer, 1865)
The name Aeshna was coined by the
Danish entomologist Fabricius in the 18th century. The name may have resulted
from a printer's error in spelling the Greek Aechma, "a spear". The spelling
'Aeschna' has been intermittently used over a period of time, but is now
abandoned for the original name 'Aeshna'. However, derived genus names
(such as Rhionaeschna) retain the 'sch' spelling, as this is how they were
first cited. This genus has recently been split into Aeshna and Rhinoaeschna.
Rhionaeschna cornigera is found in
Middle America and South America, including Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica,
Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, El Salvador,
Venezuela. It is a large species with body length 60 - 65 mm.
Male identification:
-
Abdomen length 43 mm.
-
Thorax with two bold lateral stripes with kinks.
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Abdomen dark with minimal blue and green markings.
Female identification:
-
Abdomen length 40 mm, hindwing length 40 mm.
-
Similar to male, but lacks blue trim on S2.
-
Base of wings amber-tinted into the triangle.
Reference:
http://efg.cs.umb.edu/monteverde/Ode/OdeIntro.html
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