THE DRAGON 



113 



135. Diplax Berenice, male. 



One of our most common Dragon flies is the ruby Dragon fly, 

 Diplax rubicund ula, which is yellowish-red. It is seen every- 

 where flying over pools, and also frequents dry sunny woods and 

 glades. Another common 

 form is Diplax Berenice 

 (Fig. 135 male, Fig. 13G 

 female. The accompany- 

 ing cut (137) represents 

 the larva, probably of this 

 species, according to Mr. 

 Uhlcr.) It is black, the 

 head blue in front, spotted 

 with yellow, while the 

 thorax and abdomen are 

 striped with yellow. 

 There are fewer stripes on the body of the male, which has only 

 four large yellow spots on each side of the abdomen. 

 Still another pretty species is Diplax Elisa (Fig. 138). 

 It is black, with the head yellowish and with greenish- 

 yellow spots on the sides of the thorax and base of the 

 abdomen. There are three dusky spots on the front 

 edge of each wing, and a large cloud at the base of the 

 hind pair towards the hind angles of the wing. 

 137. Larva Rather a rare form, and of much smaller stature is 

 of Diplax. tlie Nannophya bella (Fig. 138, female). It was first 

 detected in Baltimore, and we afterwards found it not unfre- 

 quently by a pond in 

 Maine. Its abdomen is 

 unusually short, and the 

 reticulations of the 

 wings are large and sim- 

 ple. The female is black, 

 while the male is frosted 

 over with a whitish pow- 

 der. Many more species 

 of this family are found 

 in this country, and for 

 descriptions of them we 



136. Diplax Berenice, female. 



would refer the reader to Dr. Hagen's " Synopsis of the Neurop- 

 tera of North America," published by the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution. 



