Great Blue Skimmer Dragonfly Libellula vibrans. Insect. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright © 2025 Now I Wonder. All rights reserved.

Complete Guide To The Great Blue Skimmer Dragonfly

ByChristine Species Guides

Great Blue Skimmer Dragonfly

Great Blue Skimmer Dragonfly Images

How to Identify Great Blue Skimmer Dragonflies

  • Great Blue Skimmer dragonflies are the largest skimmer species in North America. These impressive dragonflies grow to:
    • 2.5 inches (63 mm) in total body length.
    • 2.0 inches (51 mm) in hind wing length.
  • Males have:
    • Turquoise eyes.
    • White faces.
    • Powder-blue, pruinose thoraxes and abdomens.
    • Clear wings with small dark spots at the nodus and pterostigma, and slightly darkened tips.
  • Females and juvenile males have:
    • Brown to blue eyes.
    • White faces.
    • Cream-colored thoraxes with brown stripes.
    • Cream to yellow abdomens with lengthwise, black dorsal stripe.
    • Wings similar to males.

Great Blue Skimmer Dragonfly Notes

  • Not only are Great Blue Skimmer dragonflies easy to spot in the wild thanks to their large size, they also perch for long periods of time out in the open.
    • They choose sunny patches of ground or vegetation and perch with their wings slightly drooped below their bodies.
  • Unlike many other dragonfly species, Great Blue Skimmer dragonflies can live in swampy areas with dark, mucky water.
    • Look for them around bogs, swamps, and slow forest streams and seeps.
    • You may encounter a Great Blue Skimmer dragonfly in fairly deep forest, especially after heavy rain or spring melt.
  • Female Great Blue Skimmer dragonflies oviposit by tossing their eggs into the water. Then, while males hover-guard from above, the females use their abdomens to splash the water and eggs around, often splashing them up onto the banks (Abbott 2015).

Great Blue Skimmer Dragonfly Classification

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Odonata

Family

Libellulidae (Skimmer Dragonflies)

Genus

Libellula

Species

L. vibrans

Binomial Name

Libellula vibrans

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Christine
Christine is the creator and author of NowIWonder.com, a website dedicated to the animals and plants that share our world, and the science that helps us understand them. Inspired by lifelong exploration and learning, Christine loves to share her knowledge with others who want to connect with wild faces and wild spaces.
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