Ancient Greenling vs Ebony Jewelwing

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Ancient Greenling Ebony Jewelwing
Scientific Name Hemiphlebia mirabilis Calopteryx maculata
Order Odonata Odonata
Family Hemiphlebiidae Calopterygidae
Size 20-25 mm 39-57 mm body
Habitat Wetlands Rivers & Streams
Diet Predators Omnivores
Regions Oceania North America
Conservation Endangered Least Concern

Ancient Greenling

The sole surviving member of one of the most ancient damselfly families on Earth.

💡

Did You Know?

It is considered a living fossil and the most phylogenetically isolated odonate alive.

Ebony Jewelwing

A stunning damselfly with entirely jet-black wings (males) or smoky wings with white spots (females). Males perform a courtship display by opening and closing their dark wings.

💡

Did You Know?

Male ebony jewelwings perform a butterfly-like courtship dance, slowly fluttering their dramatic black wings to catch sunlight and impress females perched on streamside vegetation.