Baltic Hawker (Aeshna serrata)
• English name: Baltic Hawker
• German name: Baltische Mosaikjungfer
• French name: Aeschne dentée
• Dutch name: Getande glazenmaker
• Swedish name: Vassmosaikslända
• Norwegian name: Takrørøyenstikker
• Finnish name: Rannikkoukonkorento
• Danish name: Baltisk mosaikguldsmed
• Italian name: N/A
• Czech name: N/A
• Slovenian name: N/A
• Bulgarian name: N/A
Baltic Hawker (Aeshna serrata)
Map data based on J.-P. Boudot & V. J. Kalkman (eds.),
Atlas of the European Dragonflies and Damselflies
| General | ➤ a very large species which in Europe occurs only on the Baltic coast | |
| Classification | • suborder: Anisoptera (dragonflies); family: Aeshnidae | |
| Scientific name | • Aeshna serrata Hagen, 1856 | |
| Distribution | • click or tap the Map button above | |
| Notes | • males slowly weave their way through dense reed beds, looking for ovipositing females | |
| ➤ looks like an oversized A. juncea, but click or tap here for an illustration of the key differences between the two species | ||
| • aeshnids are 'fliers': they spend a lot of time on the wing and seldom hang up for a rest | ||
| Habitat | • ponds and lagoons near the Baltic sea, often with brackish water and reed beds | |
| Dimensions | • typical body length: 75-81 mm; hindwing: 48-53 mm | |
| Both sexes | Thorax | • the thorax is brown with two wide yellow bands on the side |
| • the narrow antehumeral stripe is yellow | ||
| Wings | • the costa (i.e. the leading edge of the wing) is yellow | |
| Male | Abdomen | • the abdomen is dark brown with large, rectangular blue spots |
| • the lower appendage is short | ||
| • the tips of the upper appendages bear a row of small teeth | ||
| Female | Abdomen | • the abdomen is dark brown with extensive yellow spots |
| Photographs | • all of our photographs below were made in Southern Finland in 2010, 2012 and 2018 |
