A male Clamp-tipped Emerald in Garrett Co., Maryland (7/20/2008). I caught this dragonfly for identification purposes then placed him in a natural position so photos could be taken. You can tell he was caught and placed by his wings being up-turned and not laying flat like they would be naturally. This is an easy way to tell if a dragonfly photograph was truly in situ.
Clamp-tipped Emerald (Somatochlora tenebrosa) is a widespread and familiar Somatochlora in much of the east. It is named for the extremely peculiar, clamp-shaped cerci and epiproct of the male. This dragonfly breeds in small, shaded forest streams (Paulson, 2011). In Maryland, the species is widespread, and is probably the most common species of its genus in the state (Richard Orr's The Dragonflies and Damselflies of Maryland and the District of Columbia).
A male Clamp-tipped Emerald in Garrett Co., Maryland (7/20/2008). I caught this dragonfly for identification purposes then placed him in a natural position so photos could be taken. You can tell he was caught and placed by his wings being up-turned and not laying flat like they would be naturally. This is an easy way to tell if a dragonfly photograph was truly in situ.
Media by
Jim Brighton.
Somatochlora tenebrosa, the clamp-tipped emerald, is a species of emerald dragonfly in the family Corduliidae. It is found in North America.[3][4][1][5]
The IUCN conservation status of Somatochlora tenebrosa is "LC", least concern, with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The population is stable. The IUCN status was reviewed in 2017.[1][6][7]
Kalkman, V. J. (2013). Studies on phylogeny and biogeography of damselflies (Odonata) with emphasis on the Argiolestidae (PhD). Leiden University. hdl:1887/22953.