American rubyspot
Introduction The '''American rubyspot''' (''Hetaerina americana'') is a damselfly of the family Calopterygidae.Males have a lustrous red head and thorax. The abdomen of both genders is brilliant green.The female may have either green or copper colored marks on the thorax.Hetaerina americana-female copper form.jpg|Female copper formHetaerina americana-female green form.jpg|Female green formDuring mating, a male uses claspers at the end of his abdomen to grab a female behind the head, and the female bends her abdomen to engage segments 2–3 of the male, where sperm is stored, forming a "wheel" or "valentine". The male forcefully expels sperm stored by the female from prior matings before injecting his own.Hetaerina americana-mating.jpg|Male above, female belowHetaerina americana-mating.webm|Mating wheel; sperm removal
Etymology The name highlights this damselfly's status as the most widespread of the North American rubyspots.It is reported from all of the lower 48 US states except Washington and Idaho, and is also found in Mexico and southern and eastern Canada.
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