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Sticker of Formosan damselfly
Bug card No. 1736 of 4,939

Formosan damselfly

Euphaea formosa
Eats: Other bugs and small animalsDragonflies and damselfliesPonds, rivers and shores6 legs

The Formosan damselfly is a slender damselfly that lives only on the island of Taiwan. Formosa is an old name for Taiwan, and that is where its name comes from. There it is a common sight.

Lives in
Only in Taiwan, near streams and rivers
Top speed
about 10 km/h (6.2 mph)
Flying, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. Damselflies have no sting and do not bite people.
What does it eat?
It catches small flying insects. Its babies live in the water and hunt tiny water animals.
For real!Photo of Formosan damselfly
Picture by Tiouraren (Y.-C. Tsai). CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

It lives on one island only, Taiwan, and nowhere else in the world.

2

Long ago one was said to come from China, but scientists think the label on that old specimen was simply wrong.

3

It is common, and experts say it is not in danger of dying out.

you asked

Most asked questions about Formosan damselfly

?Where does the Formosan damselfly live?

Only on the island of Taiwan, where it is common.

?Is the Formosan damselfly endangered?

No. It is common in Taiwan and is not in danger.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Euphaea formosa
Group
Dragonflies and damselflies
Family
Euphaeidae
Classification
Insecta > Odonata > Euphaeidae
Lives on
Asia

Where the facts come from

  1. Euphaea formosa (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 Tiouraren (Y.-C. Tsai). 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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