Euphaeidae | |
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Euphaea fraseri, male | |
Euphaea fraseri, female | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Odonata |
Suborder: | Zygoptera |
Superfamily: | Calopterygoidea |
Family: |
Euphaeidae Jacobson & Bianchi, 1905 |
Genera | |
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The Euphaeidae are a family of damselflies in the order Odonata sometimes called Epallaginidae. They are commonly known as gossamerwings. It is a small family of damselflies with around 70 species. They commonly occur in Old World tropics. They are large and mostly metallic-coloured. They look similar to species of damselflies in the family Calopterygidae.
The larvae have seven pairs of supplementary gills along the abdomen in addition to the usual three sac-like gills at the tip of the abdomen. Adults have the fore- and hindwings of equal length, barely petiolate and a long pterostigma that is broader in the hindwing. Adults have close veins and numerous antenodals (15-38), and most breed in forest streams.