Mecistogaster is a genus of large Neotropical damselflies in the family Coenagrionidae, commonly known as helicopter damsels. There are eleven species distributed from Mexico to Argentina.Irusta, J. B., & Lencioni, F. A. A. (2015). First record of Pseudostigmatidae (Insecta: Odonata) in the Northeast Region of Brazil. Check List, 11(2), 1565.
Members of this genus have very long abdomens which they use to deposit their eggs in the water-filled rosettes of bromeliads growing on trees in the forest.
Species include:
Mecistogaster amalia – Amalia Helicopter Mecistogaster amazonica Mecistogaster asticta Mecistogaster buckleyi – Blue-tipped Helicopter Mecistogaster jocaste Mecistogaster linearis Mecistogaster lucretia Mecistogaster martinezi Mecistogaster modesta Mecistogaster ornata – Ornate Helicopter Mecistogaster pronoti – Atlantic Helicopter
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