Common Bluet (Enallagma cyathigerum)
• English name: Common Bluet
• German name: Gemeine Becherjungfer
• French name: Agrion porte-coupe
• Dutch name: Watersnuffel
• Swedish name: Sjöflickslända
• Norwegian name: Stor blåvannymfe
• Finnish name: Okatytönkorento
• Danish name: Almindelig vandnymfe
• Italian name: Azzurrina portacalice
• Czech name: šidélko kroužkované
• Slovenian name: Bleščeči zmotec
• Bulgarian name: Синьогръдо пъстриче
Common Bluet
(Enallagma cyathigerum)
Not present
Present before 1990
Present after 1990
Present before and after 1990
Present after 2015
Map data based on J.-P. Boudot & V. J. Kalkman (eds.),
Atlas of the European Dragonflies and Damselflies
| General | • a small, stubby-looking species, very common and widespread throughout Europe | |
| Classification | • suborder: Zygoptera (damselflies); family: Coenagrionidae | |
| Conservation status | • IUCN Red List Europe: Least Concern | |
| Scientific name | • Enallagma cyathigerum (Charpentier, 1840) | |
| Name genus | • Enallagma: from Grk. ἐνάλλαγμα = (risk of) confusion ⇒ originally intended as a genus to subsume all (potentially confusing) Bluet species | |
| Name species | • cyathigerum: from Grk. κύαθος = cup, beaker +; Lat. -ger, -gera, -gerum = -bearing ⇒ for the cup-shaped mark on the male's S2 | |
| Distribution | • click or tap the Map button above | |
| Habitat | • any pond or lake, especially with acidic water | |
| Dimensions | • typical body length: 29-36 mm; hindwing: 15-21 mm | |
| Both sexes | Thorax | • the antehumeral stripe is very wide |
| ➤ there is no black line on the metapleural suture (cf. Erythromma lindenii) | ||
| Male | Abdomen | • in mature males the abdomen is deep blue; in immature males it is pale blue |
| ➤ S8 and S9 are blue, S10 is black, and the upper appendages are short | ||
| • the small, rounded black mark on S2 resembles a mushroom | ||
| Wings | • the pterostigma is uniformly dark grey | |
| Female | Thorax | • the lower side of the thorax is either blue or green or, in some immature females, beige |
| Abdomen | • the lower side of the abdomen is either blue or green or, in some immature females, beige | |
| ➤ the abdomen has a vulvar spine underneath S8 | ||
| Wings | • the pterostigma is uniformly light grey | |
| Photographs | • most of our photos below were made in central and northern Italy |
