# Blue-tailed damselfly (*Ischnura elegans*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-tailed-damselfly  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The blue-tailed damselfly (Ischnura elegans) is an insect in the family Coenagrionidae, placed in the order Odonata and the suborder Zygoptera. It is also called the Common bluetail or Common Ischnura, and its scientific name carries the authority (Vander Linden, 1820). On the IUCN Red List it is assessed globally as Least Concern (LC), which is not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | 3 cm – 3.4 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | freshwater, wetland |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Arthropoda
- class: Insecta
- order: Odonata
- family: Coenagrionidae
- genus: Ischnura
- species: *Ischnura elegans* (Vander Linden, 1820)

Synonyms: *Agrion aglae*, *Agrion elegans*, *Agrion elegans*, *Agrion excelsa*, *Agrion ezonatum*, *Agrion hastulatum*, *Agrion magna*, *Agrion pupilla*, *Agrion rubens*, *Agrion rufescens*, *Agrion tuberculatum*, *Ischnura elegans*, *Ischnura elegans malikovae*, *Ischnura elegans subsp. ebneri*, *Ischnura elegans subsp. marquardti*, *Ischnura elegans subsp. mortoni*, *Ischnura elegans subsp. pontica*, *Ischnura lamellata*, *Ischnura ordosi*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the blue-tailed damselfly?

The blue-tailed damselfly is an insect in the dragonflies and damselflies group, belonging to the order Odonata and the suborder Zygoptera.

### What is the scientific name of the blue-tailed damselfly?

Its scientific name is Ischnura elegans, placing it in the genus Ischnura.

### Who named the blue-tailed damselfly and when?

The scientific name Ischnura elegans carries the authority (Vander Linden, 1820).

### Is the blue-tailed damselfly endangered?

No. It is assessed globally as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### What family does the blue-tailed damselfly belong to?

It belongs to the family Coenagrionidae, within the superfamily Coenagrionoidea.

### What other names does the blue-tailed damselfly have?

It is also called the Common bluetail and the Common Ischnura.

## Sources

- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844), CC BY 4.0, 2.0. Chauvier, Y., Adde, A., Bergamini, A. et al. (2025) TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Blue-tailed damselfly (Ischnura elegans). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-tailed-damselfly