Banded demoiselle  (Calopteryx splendens)

The banded demoiselle is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List (1). It is not threatened in the UK (2).

The banded demoiselle (Calopteryx splendens) has the same style of butterfly-like flitting flight as that of the beautiful demoiselle (C. virgo) (3). Males have a metallic bluish-green body with a central band of blackish-blue pigment on the wings. The females are metallic green and lack the band on the wings (3). Males of this species can be distinguished from those of the similar species, the beautiful demoiselle, as the pigmentation on the wing forms a distinct band, whereas in the latter species this is broader and more extensive, covering much of the wing (4).

In Britain, this species tends to occur south of a line drawn between Blackpool and Middlesbrough, but with a few scattered populations in the Lake District (3). Elsewhere the banded demoiselle is found in central and southern mainland Europe (2), across Asia to China (4).

You can view distribution information for this species at the National Biodiversity Network Gateway.

The banded demoiselle inhabits slow-moving rivers, ponds and other still water-bodies (2).

The larvae occur amongst roots or aquatic plants. They are active mainly at night, and like other damselfly larvae are active predators. Larval development takes around two years, and they overwinter twice in the mud at the bottom of the river or pond (3). Larvae often travel for up to 100 metres out of water before the adult emergence occurs, typically in a shrub or tree (3). The flight period of banded demoiselle adults is between May and the end of September (2). They take seven to ten days to mature following emergence, after which time they fly to breeding sites. Banded demoiselle males hold territories around suitable egg-laying sites amongst vegetation that protrudes from the water, or they perch on vegetation at the riverside (4). Whilst the territory-holding males actively court females with a fluttering display flight (3), perching males try to mate with any female that passes by (4). Occasionally, males will fight over a territory, engaging in contest of a series of stereotypical flights for hours (3). After mating, females oviposit alone, often placing the eggs into the tissues of submerged vegetation (4). The eggs take around 14 days to hatch (3).

The banded demoiselle is not threatened.

Conservation action is not required for the banded demoiselle (4).

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

There may be further information about this species available via the National Biodiversity Network Gateway.

Learn more about the banded demoiselle:

• BBC Wildlife Finder:
  http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/species/Banded_Demoiselle

For more information on dragonflies and damselflies:

•  The British Dragonfly Society:
  http://www.dragonflysoc.org.uk/

For more on invertebrates and their conservation:

• Buglife, the invertebrate conservation trust:
  http://www.buglife.org.uk/