Blue Ghost Firefly vs Russet-tipped Clubtail

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Blue Ghost Firefly Russet-tipped Clubtail
Scientific Name Phausis reticulata Stylurus plagiatus
Order Coleoptera Odonata
Family Lampyridae Gomphidae
Size 7-12 mm 50-58 mm
Habitat Forests Rivers & Streams
Diet Omnivores Omnivores
Regions Eastern North America North America, Central America
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Blue Ghost Firefly

A firefly producing a steady pale blue-white glow rather than flashing. Females are larviform and wingless, glowing softly on the forest floor.

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Did You Know?

Males fly slowly just above the leaf litter, creating an ethereal drifting glow that gives them their ghostly name.

Russet-tipped Clubtail

A handsome clubtail with orange-brown wingtips and a distinctly widened club-shaped abdomen. It flies late in the season along rivers in the southern US.

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Did You Know?

Its distinctly orange-russet wingtips are unique among North American clubtails.