THE XERCES SOCIETY FOR INVERTEBRATE CONSERVATION

Aquatic Invertebrates in Pacific Northwest Freshwater Wetlands
An Identification Guide and Educational Resource

Only two species of jewelwings are found in the Pacific Northwest: the river jewelwing (Calopteryx aequabilis) and the American rubyspot (Hetaerina americana). The river jewelwing is more likely to be found in the Northwest than the American rubyspot. Jewelwings are not common in wetlands, as they live mainly in streams and rivers, where they crawl among the vegetation and exposed roots at the edges.

The larvae have distinctive antennae, the first segment of which is longer than all the other segments combined. Their bodies, legs, and plates at the end of their abdomen are long and thin. The middle plate at the end of the abdomen is shorter than the other two. The center of the labium has two prominent lobes with a deep notch or indentation between them.

In the American rubyspot, the grabbing part of the labium (prementum) is split in the middle only to about the base of the outer lobes, whereas in the river jewelwing, the prementum is split almost to where the sides begin to angle outward.