Zygoptera (damselflies)

Code QO109999

A single species of the south-east Asian genus Neurobasis was recorded from Cape York last century. There are no recent Australian records, but N. australis is common in New Guinea. The adult is large, long-legged and metallic green, with numerous crossveins in the wings and vividly coloured hindwings in the male. It inhabits streams and rivers.

The larvae has not been figured, but has been described as having the typical features of the family: a flat labium lacking major setae, palps narrow with three sharp distal teeth, median lobe deeply cleft (ie. almost divided into two, not just with a central fissure as in the lestoid families), pedicel of antenna very long, median gill leaf-like and lateral gills triquetral.

The author would be grateful for any reports concerning this family in Australia. Please contact John Trueman at the Research School of Biological Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200 Calopterygidae turn up in your Australian samples.