Spreadwings & Sprites

Southern Spreadwing Sweetflag Spreadwing Sphagnum Sprite Slender Spreadwing

What are they?

Spreadwings and sprites usually rest with the wings held out at a swept-back angle - though sprites will often fold them along the back too. Most species lurk low in dense, pondside vegetation and some species can be found in woodland until they are mature.

Identification

Sprites are very similar to spreadwings but are noticeably much smaller. Identification of some species can be impossible without close checking of the external genitalia (the paraprocts and cerci) at the end of the abdomen.



Southern Spreadwing      Lestes australis

Length: 1.7 inches. Flight time: Late April to Late September. The commonest and most widespread spreadwing in Cape May County. Formerly considered a subspecies of the Northern Spreadwing (Lestes disjunctus) but both are now considered to be separate species. Males can only be told from Sweetflag Spreadwing by the cerci, but females have shorter ovipositors than those of female Sweetflag Spreadwings.
Southern Spreadwing Southern Spreadwing Southern Spreadwing
Male
Male thorax and head
Male cerci

Southern Spreadwing Southern Spreadwing
Pair in tandem
Female

Sweetflag Spreadwing      Lestes forcipatus

Length: 1.7 inches. Flight time: Mid May to early November. A fairly common species but numbers can fluctuate and the species seems to be most common at well-vegetated vernal ponds during wet years. Numbers were noticeably high at Rio Grande in 2010 for example. Males can only be told from Southern Spreadwing by the paraprocts which are as long as the cerci (not shorter).
Sweetflag Spreadwing Sweetflag Spreadwing Sweetflag Spreadwing Sweetflag Spreadwing
Male
Male thorax and head
Female thorax and head
Female ovipositor in use

Swamp Spreadwing      Lestes vigilax

Length: 1.7 inches. Flight time: Late May to mid September. A common species that often perches more conspicuously than other spreadwings and may be found in wooded areas away from water.
Swamp Spreadwing Swamp Spreadwing Swamp Spreadwing Swamp Spreadwing
Male
Male
Male thorax and head
Male

Swamp Spreadwing
Male appendages
from below

Elegant Spreadwing      Lestes inaequalis

Length: 1.8 inches. Flight time: Late May to early August. A brightly-colored, metallic species which closely resembles Swamp Spreadwing, but has paler legs and the back of the head is pale cream-colored.
Elegant Spreadwing Elegant Spreadwing
Male
Male head and legs

Slender Spreadwing      Lestes rectangularis

Length: 1.7-2.0 inches. Flight time: Early May to late October. A widespread and fairly common species of well-vegetated ponds, especially in wooded areas. A distinctive species with its long, spindly abdomen.
Slender Spreadwing Slender Spreadwing Slender Spreadwing
Female
Female
Female thorax and head

Slender Spreadwing Slender Spreadwing Slender Spreadwing
Male
Male
Male thorax and head

Southern Sprite      Nehalennia integricollis

Length: 0.8-1.0 inch. Flight time: Late June to early August. An uncommon species in Cape May County, though easily overlooked due to its small size. The pattern of blue on the tip of the abdomen should help to identify the male, while the female can be identified by the straight rear edge to the prothorax (the plate that sits between the head and thorax).
Southern Sprite Southern Sprite
Male
Male

Sphagnum Sprite      Nehalennia gracilis

Length: 1.1 inches. Flight time: Mid May to early September. A common species of well-vegetated ponds, acid bogs and ponds, though its small size makes it easy to miss.
Sphagnum Sprite Sphagnum Sprite Sphagnum Sprite
Pair in tandem
Male
Male