CreatureData

Common darter

Sympetrum striolatum (Charpentier, 1840)

Status not recordeddragonflies

The common darter (Sympetrum striolatum) is a species in the family Libellulidae, order Odonata. Recorded adults reach 4.4 cm in length.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the common darter

Weight
Not recorded
Length
3.5 cm – 4.4 cm
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Invertivore
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
freshwater
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Active
By day (diurnal)
Generations a year
One
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

How big is the common darter?

COMMON DARTER · LENGTH 4.4 CMADULT HUMAN · HEIGHT 1.7 M
At 4.4 cm, the recorded maximum length of the common darter is about 2.6% of the height of an adult human (1.7 m, a fixed reference used for scale).

Where does the common darter live?

Not recorded

Is the common darter endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the common darter classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumArthropoda
  3. classInsecta
  4. orderOdonata
  5. familyLibellulidae
  6. genusSympetrum
  7. SpeciesSympetrum striolatum (Charpentier, 1840)

Synonyms Diplax commixta, Diplax striolata, Libellula macrocephala, Libellula ruficollis, Libellula striolatum, Sympetrum commixtum, Sympetrum durum, Sympetrum nigrescens, Sympetrum striolatum doshidorzhii, Sympetrum subpruinosum

Other names and names in other languages (35)
  • Black-legged SympetrumEnglish
  • Common SympetrumEnglish
  • Common/ highland darter dragonflyEnglish
  • Highland darterEnglish
  • Veliki livadarBosnian
  • Pixaví estriatCatalan
  • vážka žíhanáCzech
  • Gwäell GyffredinWelsh
  • Stor hedelibelDanish
  • Große HeidelibelleGerman
  • Libélula estriadaSpanish
  • lännensyyskorentoFinnish
  • Sympétrum StriéFrench
  • tarbh-nathrach gathair cumantaScottish Gaelic
  • Lavacú estriadoGalician
  • Veliki strijelacCroatian
  • Cardinale striatoItalian
  • senhøstlibelleNorwegian Bokmål
  • Bruinrode heidelibelDutch
  • seinhaustlibelleNorwegian Nynorsk
  • Libélula comumPortuguese
  • Progasti kamenjakSlovenian
  • Hedhësi i zakonshëmAlbanian
  • Jesenji poljski konjicSerbian
  • stor ängstrollsländaSwedish
  • 条斑赤蜻Chinese
  • Gwäell yr UcheldirWelsh
  • Gweyll CyffredinWelsh
  • Gweyll yr UcheldirWelsh
  • Picellwr CyffredinWelsh
  • Le Sympétrum StriéFrench
  • Sympétrum fascié (Le)French
  • tairbh-nathrach ghathair chumantaScottish Gaelic
  • rødbrun høstlibelleNorwegian Bokmål
  • större ängstrollsländaSwedish

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the common darter

Other species in the same genus Sympetrum.

LC, Least Concern
Ruddy darter (Sympetrum sanguineum)

Ruddy darter

Sympetrum sanguineum

Libellulidae

Nomad

Sympetrum fonscolombii

LibellulidaeNo free photo yet

Banded darter

Sympetrum pedemontanum

LibellulidaeNo free photo yet

CompareCommon darter vs Yellow-winged darterCommon darter vs Ruddy darterCommon darter vs NomadCommon darter vs Vagrant darter

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the common darter?

An adult common darter measures 3.5 cm – 4.4 cm long, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the common darter?

The common darter (Sympetrum striolatum) belongs to the family Libellulidae in the order Odonata.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Common darter (Sympetrum striolatum). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-darter

MLA

“Common darter (Sympetrum striolatum).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-darter.

BibTeX
@misc{common_darter_2026,
  title = {Common darter (Sympetrum striolatum)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-darter},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}