endemic to a single state or province

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: (250-20,000 square km (about 100-8000 square miles)) Known from the Hawaiian Islands of Molokai, Lanai, Maui and Hawaii (Polhemus and Asquith 1996).

Comments: Generally found in upland streams and prefers breeding in the pooled sections of flowing perennial streams, however, some populations have been found breeding in areas that lack streams (Polhemus and Asquith 1996).

Non-Migrant: No. All populations of this species make significant seasonal migrations.

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

The general biology of Hawaiian damselflies is typical of other narrow-winged damselflies. The males of most species are territorial, guarding areas of habitat where females will lay eggs (Moore 1983a). During copulation, and often while the female lays eggs, the male grasps the female behind the head with his terminal abdominal appendages to guard her against rival males, thus males and females are frequently seen flying in tandem. In species with fully aquatic immature stages, females lay eggs in submerged aquatic vegetation or in mats of moss or algae on submerged rocks, and hatching occurs in about ten days (Williams 1936; Polhemus 1994b). In most species of Hawaiian damselflies, the immature stages (naiads) are aquatic, breathing though three flattened, abdominal gills, and are predacious, feeding on small aquatic invertebrates or fish (Williams 1936). Naiads may take up to 4 months to mature (Williams 1936), after which they crawl out of the water onto rocks or vegetation, molt into winged adults, which typically remain very close to the aquatic habitat from which they emerged.

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Reasons: Endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, however considered one of the most common native damselflies encountered along the upland streams of Maui and Molokai (Polhemus and Asquith 1996).