Bug Wiki
Bug Wiki / All bugs / Dragonflies and damselflies
Sticker of Spatterdock darner
Bug card No. 4063 of 4,939

Spatterdock darner

Rhionaeschna mutata
Eats: Other bugs and small animalsDragonflies and damselfliesPonds, rivers and shores6 legs

The spatterdock darner is a dragonfly from North America. It belongs to the darners, a family of big, strong dragonflies. It is very picky about its home and likes small, quiet ponds full of plants.

Lives in
North America, at small ponds full of plants
Top speed
about 40 km/h (25 mph)
Flying, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. Dragonflies have no sting, so you can just watch it fly.
What does it eat?
Like all dragonflies, it catches small flying insects. Its babies live under water and hunt tiny water animals.
For real!Photo of Spatterdock darner
Picture by Marlo Perdicas. CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

It likes ponds with no fish in them, where its babies are safer.

2

Its favourite ponds are small, have trees around the edge and soft moss called sphagnum.

3

Some of its ponds dry up for part of the year, and it still manages to live there.

4

Scientists say there are plenty of them, and their number stays steady.

you asked

Most asked questions about Spatterdock darner

?Is the spatterdock darner dangerous?

No. Dragonflies have no sting and are harmless to people.

?Where does the spatterdock darner live?

In North America, at small ponds full of plants and without fish.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Rhionaeschna mutata
Group
Dragonflies and damselflies
Family
Aeshnidae
Classification
Insecta > Odonata > Aeshnidae
Lives on
North America

Where the facts come from

  1. Rhionaeschna mutata (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Marlo Perdicas. CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

Bug Wiki honey jar For grown-ups: Bug Wiki is free, with no ads and no tracking. A small tip helps keep it online.Leave a tip

More from the same group: Dragonflies and damselflies

Emperor dragonflyDragonflies and damselfliesCommon whitetailDragonflies and damselfliesGreen darnerDragonflies and damselfliesEbony jewelwingDragonflies and damselfliesGlobe skimmerDragonflies and damselfliesBlue dasherDragonflies and damselflies

Also at home here: Ponds, rivers and shores

Lateral-lined water beetleBeetlesAustralian water scorpionTrue bugs and cicadasAlligatorweed flea beetleBeetlesGround lackeyMothsNew Zealand dobsonflyOther insectsRed speckled dunOther insects
Honey jarfor grown-ups