Male and female much alike. Male has a wingspan around 64 mm, length 30 mm; Female wingspan 54 mm, length 28 mm. The eyes are reddish brown above, paler olivaceous beneath and at the sides; vesicle, frons and upper parts of epistome metallic blue green; occiput blackish brown; lower part of epistome, labium and labrum brown. Prothorax black. Thorax and abodomen brown with a metallic green lustre. Legs are brown. The forewing narrow, the hind very broad, especially at the anal area. Black or balckish browm by transmitted light but reflecting a dark, metallic green. In the male the metallic lustre is general throughout the wing but in the female is most marked at the base, especially in the fore part of loop. The apex of forewing in the male is hyaline, this area being very variable, from a mere spur at the extreme apex, to a wider area extending to within 1 or 2 cells of the stigma and running obliquely outwards and backwards. In the female,both wing apices are hyaline, in the fore to just proximal of the stigma and in the hind to 1 cell distal of the stigma, its free border being here deeply concave. In the male, there is often a clearer triangular area just distal of the node more marked in the hindwing than in the fore.

Rhyothemis plutonia is a widespread species, occurring from northeast India to China and south to the Malay peninsular and Sumatra. The only records from China are from Hainan, but it must be present in other parts of south China and should be searched for there and in Bhutan. This species breeds in lakes, ponds and even in the side pools of reservoirs and irrigation channels. Adults are quite shy and weakly fluttering insects. 

Rhyothemis plutonia has a wide distribution, its breeding habitats include artificial and disturbed ones and it is often common where it occurs, it is therefore assessed by IUCN Red List as Least Concern.