Asian Emerald Spreadwing

Lestes elatus · Order: Odonata · Family: Lestidae

Also called: Emerald Spreadwing

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Asian Emerald Spreadwing
Photo: renjus box, CC BY

The Asian Emerald Spreadwing is a medium-sized damselfly. Its thorax is brown on top, turning yellowish-brown on the sides, with two narrow metallic-green stripes on the dorsum that spread outward like a hockey stick.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

The thorax is brown on the back and yellowish-brown on the sides, marked with a pair of narrow metallic-green ante-humeral stripes that widen toward the abdomen like a hockey stick.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

It is a medium-sized damselfly.

Source: Wikipedia

Lookalikes

It can be easily told apart from other Lestes species by its distinctive metallic thoracic stripes.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Asian Emerald Spreadwing photo 3
Photo: sunnyjosef, CC BY
Asian Emerald Spreadwing photo 4
Photo: sunnyjosef, CC BY

Questions people ask

How can I identify an Asian Emerald Spreadwing?

Look for a medium-sized damselfly with brown dorsal thorax, yellowish-brown sides, and two narrow metallic-green stripes on the back that spread outward like a hockey stick.

Source: Wikipedia

What makes this species different from other spreadwings?

Its unique metallic-green thoracic stripes set it apart from other members of its genus.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Lestidae)

Western Willow SpreadwingWestern Willow SpreadwingChalcolestes viridisSlender SpreadwingSlender SpreadwingLestes rectangularisCommon Winter DamselflyCommon Winter DamselflySympecma fuscaCommon SpreadwingCommon SpreadwingLestes sponsaGreat SpreadwingGreat SpreadwingArchilestes grandisSpotted SpreadwingSpotted SpreadwingLestes congener

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lestes_elatus

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.