About Ischnura genei (Rambur, 1842)
Ischnura genei, commonly known as the island bluetail damselfly, is a species of damselfly that replaces the blue-tailed damselfly on several Mediterranean islands, including Corsica, Sardinia, and Sicily. The two species are not known to coexist in these locations. This is a small, slender damselfly, and it is typically smaller and more delicate than the common bluetail. Its key identifying characteristics include a black abdomen. Males have a prominent blue marking, called a tail-light, on the eighth abdominal segment (S8). Some female colour forms also have a blue tail-light on S8, but this marking is usually interrupted by a black mark at each end. Other female colour forms have a rusty brown S8. Like the closely related Ischnura elegans, male island bluetail damselflies have bi-coloured pterostigma. In Malta, the species remains frequent and still breeds there, but it faces endangerment from habitat loss.
