Helicopter Damselfly (Megaloprepus caerulatus)
Pricing: No Specimens Available For Sale
Geographic Range: Southern Mexico to Bolivia
View: Top View Sex: Female
Size: Wingspan: 12-17cm
Megaloprepus caerulatus is a very large damselfly that occurs in mature wet and moist forests. Its range extends from southern Mexico and Belize south to Bolivia, Venezuela and Guyana. In males, the transparent area proximal to the dark band is milky white; in females, this milky color is present in the area at the wing tip only (wing tips are clear in males). Female Megaloprepus caerulatus use their long abdomens to flick eggs into water-filled tree holes, which serve as breeding sites during the rainy season. Males aggressively defend oviposition sites. The larvae feed on mosquitoes, which also breed in these temporary pools. Megaloprepus caerulatus larvae are highly aggressive and if there is more than one larva in a container, the strongest will kill and eat all the others. Damselflies in the genus Megaloprepus have incredible wing control. This allows them to hover silently right up to spiders at rest in the centers of their webs. With one, well-timed surge forward, they snatch the spider out and devour the abdomen, discarding the rest.