Comet Darner vs Narrow-leafed Ash

Anax longipes compared with Fraxinus angustifolia

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Comet Darner	Narrow-leafed Ash
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Odonata (Odonata)	Lamiales (Lamiales)
Family	Aeshnidae	Oleaceae
Genus	Anax	Fraxinus
Species	Anax longipes	Fraxinus angustifolia

Conservation Status

Comet Darner

LC — Least Concern

Narrow-leafed Ash

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Comet Darner	Narrow-leafed Ash
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Comet Darner

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found in United States.

Narrow-leafed Ash

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Asia (Cyprus), Europe (6 countries), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia).

Comet Darner

<em>Anax longipes</em>, the comet darner, is a large dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae, assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It is endemic to the United States, where it inhabits lakes, ponds, and slow-moving rivers with clear water and abundant emergent vegetation. The comet darner is one of the largest North American dragonflies and is distinguished by its brilliant coloration, including a green thorax and a red-spotted abdomen in mature males. The species name longipes refers to its notably long legs. Adults are powerful aerial predators, feeding on a variety of flying insects captured in flight. Larvae are aquatic and predatory, developing in the benthic zone of freshwater habitats where they feed on invertebrates and small vertebrates. The comet darner undertakes seasonal dispersal movements and is most commonly observed near its breeding water bodies during the warmer months.