Bug FAQIncurvate Emerald
Somatochlora incurvata · Order: Odonata · Family: Corduliidae
The incurvate emerald is a medium-sized dragonfly about 5.8 cm long with dark metallic brown to black body and green eyes. It lives in bogs and fens of northeastern North America, where its larvae develop in saturated Sphagnum moss and both life stages feed on smaller insects.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The eyes are green.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are found in bogs and fens, and the larvae are thought to live within saturated Sphagnum moss.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing during the day from June through October.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 8 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Michigan, Wisconsin, Maine, Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When can I see adult incurvate emeralds?
Adults are active during daylight from June through October.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Corduliidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatochlora_incurvata
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-26 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-26.