Common glider
The common glider is a dragonfly with big dark patches at the base of its back wings. The male has a bright red body with black near the tip, and the female is a dull brown.
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Fun facts
It reached New Zealand all by itself, without any help from people.
The patches on its back wings are red on males and brown on females.
It lives at still water such as ponds, swamps and lagoons.
It was named after a bug scientist called Loew or Löw, but nobody is quite sure which of two scientists it was.
Most asked questions about Common glider
?How big is the common glider?
Its body is about 4.5 cm long, and its wings are about 8.5 cm across.
?Where does the common glider live?
In Indonesia, New Guinea, Australia and Pacific islands, and now in New Zealand too.
?Is the common glider dangerous?
No. Dragonflies have no sting and are harmless to people.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Tramea loewii
- Named by
- Brauer, 1866
- Group
- Dragonflies and damselflies
- Family
- Libellulidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Odonata > Libellulidae
- Lives on
- Asia, Australia and Oceania
Where the facts come from
- Tramea loewii (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 Summerdrought. CC BY-SA 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.
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