Cordulegaster bidentata

One of seven European Goldenring species, the Sombre Goldenring is typically darker, a bit smaller and definitely rarer than the more common Cordulegaster boltonii. Cordulegaster bidentata is a Central and Southern European species with a patchy distribution as far South as Italy and Greece. Unlike its congeners Cordulegaster boltonii and C. trinacriae, C. bidentata is a very difficult species to photograph; it seems to be always on the move and only twice have we ever managed to photograph a male at rest. Its main distinguishing features include the black (rather than yellow) occipital triangle, and the absence of the narrower golden rings on S5-S8. In all Goldenring species, the female lays her eggs by dipping her abdomen repeatedly in wet mud (or moss, etc.) in a pneumatic drill fashion.

Click a thumbnail to display a larger version (1050 x 700 pixels) of each picture. And then, if you'd like to get even closer, you can drag the ZoomBox from the top-left corner across the photograph.

Please note: you may have to refresh the photo window manually (by pressing F5 on your keyboard) for the ZoomBox to display correctly.