Protosticta gravelyi explained

Protosticta gravelyi, the pied reedtail is a damselfly species in the family Platystictidae. It is endemic to Western Ghats in India. It is very widely distributed in hill streams of Western Ghats from Goa to Agasthyamala hills in Thirunelveli district of South India.^[1]

Description and habitat

It is a large slender damselfly with bottle-green eyes. Its thorax is glossy black, marked with a broad, creamy-white stripe on each side. There is a similar stripe on the posterior part of metepimeron. Abdomen is black, marked with white and blue. Segments 1 and 2 are white laterally. Segment 3 is with a narrow basal annule. Segments 4 to 7 are with broad basal annules. Segment 8 is with its basal half turquoise-blue and segments 9 and 10 are unmarked. Anal appendages are black. Female is very similar to the male, but shorter and more robustly built.

It is usually found in first and second order streams with good riparian forest cover. Adults fly very low and rest in riparian vegetation.^{[2] [3] [4] [5] [6]}

See also

• List of odonates of India
• List of odonata of Kerala

Notes and References

1. Book: K.A. . Subramanian . K.G. . Emiliyamma . R. . Babu . C. . Radhakrishnan . S.S. . Talmale . Atlas of Odonata (Insecta) of the Western Ghats, India . 2018 . Zoological Survey of India . 9788181714954. 55–56.
2. Book: C FC Lt. Fraser. Frederic Charles Fraser. The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma, Odonata Vol. I. Taylor and Francis. Red Lion Court, Fleet Street, London. 1933. 103-105.
3. Book: C FC Lt. Fraser. Frederic Charles Fraser. A Survey of the Odonate (Dragonfly) Fauna of Western India with Special Remarks on the Genera Macromia and Idionyx and Descriptions of Thirty New Species. Zoological Survey of India. Volumes (Records). 1924. 499.
4. Book: Subramanian, K. A.. Dragonflies and Damselflies of Peninsular India - A Field Guide. 2005.
5. Web site: Protosticta gravelyi Laidlaw, 1915. India Biodiversity Portal. 2017-03-13.
6. Web site: Protosticta gravelyi Laidlaw, 1915. Odonata of India, v. 1.00. Indian Foundation for Butterflies. 2017-03-13.