Heteromorphic
Coloration in Libellula luctuosa -
One
of a series of Web Pages by Roy J. Beckemeyer devoted to ASPECTS
OF INSECT BIOLOGY. This page based largely on information provided
by and used with permission of Michael Morton.
Last Updated 13 September 2002
Right: A female Libellula luctuosa (Widow
Skimmer) with male-like pruinescence on the thorax and abdomen. The
pruinosity, or waxy coating, on this specimen appears even brighter than is
usual for males of the species. The photographer, Michael Morton,
noted that the dragonfly gave the appearance of a male Common Whitetail.
Most male Widow Skimmers have a blue cast to their pruinescence. Photo ©
2002 by Michael Morton, and used with permission. Do not copy this image
for use anywhere without requesting permission from the photographer.
Picture taken in August, 2002 in Palo Duro Canyon near Amarillo, Texas.
Additional Texas nature and wildlife photos by
Michael Morton can be found on his web site: MichaelMortonPhotography
The following is quoted from Philip S. Corbet's Dragonflies:
Behavior and ecology of Odonata (Cornell University Press, 1999),
Paragraph 8.3.2.3 Pruinescence, pp. 281-282:
"As they mature, adults of many species of
Odonata acquire on the body, wings, or both a partial or more or less complete
'bloom,' or pruinescence ... caused by a supracuticular pigment ...
[that] obscures any underlying pattern ...
Pruinescence is usually more developed on males,
in which its extent typically indicates sexual maturity ... Among Anisoptera,
pruinescence is conspicuous and widespread only in Libellulidae; males, and very
occasionally females ... of several libellulid genera become ... almost white on
the abdominal dorsum and sometimes on the wings (e.g., Libellula luctuosa)."
Sidney W. Dunkle, in Dragonflies through binoculars: A
field guide to dragonflies of North America, (Oxford University Press,
2000), p. 171, reports under the discussion of the Widow Skimmer, in the
paragraph labelled "Variation":
"From the Great Plains westward, dark wing
bands are paler basally. Also westward, and particularly from southern CA
to central AZ, males become more pruinose and females become thinly pruinose."
The pruinosity of the female pictured is quite heavy, giving
the body a male-like appearance. The wings have typical female wing
markings, with no white color distal to the black band, and with black wing
tips. The appendages appear to be typically female. Mr. Morton did
not collect the specimen pictured. It would appear to be worth visiting
the Palo Duro site to determine if this coloration is typical of females in this
population or not.
Photos of more typical Kansas male (left) and female (right) Widow
Skimmers are shown below (photos by Roy Beckemeyer):
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