Little scarlet
The little scarlet is a slim dragonfly that lives near fresh water. Grown-up males have a bright red body. It is easy to mix up with a close cousin that looks almost the same.
How fast is it?
Fun facts
It lives in many kinds of places, from dry bush to tropical forest, as long as there is fresh water nearby.
Its tummy is very slim, 3 millimetres wide or less. That is one way to tell it from its cousin.
It has small coloured spots near the tips of its wings, the same colour as its body.
It lives all over Africa south of the Sahara, and also in parts of the Middle East.
Most asked questions about Little scarlet
?Is the little scarlet dangerous?
No. Dragonflies cannot sting, and it is harmless to people.
?Where does the little scarlet live?
In Africa south of the Sahara, on Madagascar and in parts of the Middle East, always near fresh water.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Crocothemis sanguinolenta
- Group
- Dragonflies and damselflies
- Family
- Libellulidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Odonata > Libellulidae
- Lives on
- Africa, Asia
- Also known as
- Slim scarlet-darter, Small scarlet
Where the facts come from
- Crocothemis sanguinolenta (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Alandmanson. CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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