About Aeshna juncea (Linnaeus, 1758)
Aeshna juncea, commonly known as the common hawker, moorland hawker, or sedge darner, is one of the larger species of hawker dragonfly. Its native range covers the Palearctic, stretching from Ireland to Japan, and northern North America. Adults fly from June through early October. This species reaches a total length of 74 millimetres (2.9 inches) and has a brown base body color. Males have a black abdomen with paired blue and yellow spots on every abdominal segment, plus narrow stripes running along the dorsal side of the thorax. Females have a brown abdomen marked with yellow spots, which may occasionally be green or blue instead. Both sexes have a yellow-colored costa, the main vein that runs along the leading edge of each wing. Unlike the southern hawker, this species does not have green stripes on its thorax. Female common hawkers will sometimes dive down from the sky and feign death to avoid mating with unwanted males.
