The smallest dragonfly in Japan, the same size as a 100-yen coin
I went to the small wetland again that I mentioned in my last blog post. The purpose for my visit was to see the smallest dragonflies in Japan. This dragonfly named HatchÅ-tombo in Japanese, Nannophya pygmaea , is known as the smallest dragonfly in Japan and is among the smallest in the world. According to Wikipedia, adults are extremely small, measuring 17-21 mm in length. Males are orange-brown immediately after emergence and become a vivid red about 20 days after emergence. Females are brownish-red with yellow or black horizontal stripes on their abdomen. Most of the wings are transparent, but the area near the base is a beautiful orange-yellow. The comparison of this dragonfly (male) and a 100-yen coin (22.6mm). This is the wetland where this dragonfly lives. A red male dragonfly really stands out, but female one is inconspicuous. A dragonfly that has just emerged from its nymph stage. It is probably a female. What you see above is the molt ...
