Indigo Dropwing
(Trithemis festiva)

The Indigo Dropwing (Trithemis festiva) is a tropical Asian species which occurs on the Greek island of Rhodes. In size and behaviour it's quite similar to the more widely distributed dropwing Trithemis annulata, but its habitat preference and looks are very different; the species clearly prefers running rather than still waters and males can typically be seen resting on rocks or stream-side vegetation, guarding their territories. Mature male Trithemis festiva are entirely dark (i.e. dark blue rather than black) overlaid with a fine whitish pruinescence. Young males look similar to females, sporting extensive yellow patches on their abdomen. In addition, females especially often have dark patches at the wing tips and lack the amber spot at the base of their hindwings which typifies T. annulata females.

For an overview of the Indigo Dropwing's distribution in Europe, hover your mouse pointer over the map symbol .
With the authors' permission we have based this map on data published in Kalkman et al. (2010).
Legend: Red = Occurs, White = Doesn't occur; Purple = Extinct; Yellow = Vagrant.

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