Regal darner

Coryphaeschna ingens

Eats: Other bugs and small animals Dragonflies and damselfliesPonds, rivers and shores6 legs

The regal darner is a big dragonfly from the darner family. Darners are some of the largest and fastest dragonflies. It lives in North America and on the islands of the Caribbean Sea.

Lives in

North America and the Caribbean islands, near ponds and lakes

Top speed

about 40 km/h (25 mph)

Flying, estimate

Can it hurt you?

Harmless

Harmless. Dragonflies have no sting. A big one may nip if you hold it, so just watch it fly.

What does it eat?

It catches flying insects in the air. Its young live in the water and hunt tiny water animals.

Photo of Regal darner — Picture by Eric Haley from Winter Park, Florida, USA. CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How fast is it?

A kid running fast about 13 km/h (8.1 mph)

A grown-up on a bike about 25 km/h (16 mph)

Regal darner about 40 km/h (25 mph)

A car driving in town about 50 km/h (31 mph)

cool stuff

Fun facts

It belongs to the darners, a family of big dragonflies that fly long and fast.

Like every dragonfly, it can fly forwards, backwards and hover in one place.

Scientists checked how it is doing and found that it is not in danger. There are as many of them as there used to be.

you asked

Most asked questions about Regal darner

?Where does the regal darner live?

In North America and on the Caribbean islands.

?Is the regal darner dangerous?

No. It has no sting. A big dragonfly may give a small nip if held, but it is harmless.

For bug experts

Scientific name: Coryphaeschna ingens
Group: Dragonflies and damselflies
Family: Aeshnidae
Classification: Insecta > Odonata > Aeshnidae
Lives on: North America

Where the facts come from

Coryphaeschna ingens (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 Eric Haley from Winter Park, Florida, USA. CC BY 2.0, 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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