Minnesota Dragonfly

Common Baskettail

Epitheca cynosura

The Common Baskettail is a drab looking Emerald that is mostly dark with red and grey or green eyes and yellow spots running down the abdomen. Most Common Baskettails have large triangular patches at the base of the hindwing although there is a small percentage that do not exhibit this field mark

Identification

Field Marks
  • Average adult size is approximately from 1.5 to 1.7 inches
  • Face is tan with a black 'T' spot on the top of the frons which can vary in size and shape
  • Eyes are emerald green at maturity
  • Thorax is brown, black and hairy, with a couple of small yellow spots located low on each side
  • Dark abdomen with yellow dashes along the edges of the top of segments 3 to 8 and pale rings at the base of segments 9, and 10
  • Yellow dashes on the sides of the abdomen match the dashes on the top
  • Dark triangular shaped patches on the base of the hindwing in most individuals, although there is a small percentage that do not exhibit this trait
  • Dark terminal appendages that have no downward pointing spine

Click on photos above for a close-up view.

Field Marks
  • Female is colored similarly to the male
  • Females abdomen is a bit thicker than the males
  • Terminal appendages are much shorter than the males
  • Subgenital plates are 'V' shaped and longer than segment 9

Click on photos above for a close-up view.

Similar Species

  • Beaverpond Baskettail
  • The Common Baskettail has a large 'T' spot on the top of the frons, the Beaverpond Baskettail only has a triangle
  • Common Baskettail males have a wave type of cerci, The Beaverpond Baskettail's cerci resembles an antler
  • Spiny Baskettail
  • Common Baskettails have a prominent wing patch at the base of the hindwing, Spiny Baskettails have little to no dark markings on their wings
  • Male Spiny Baskettail have a small spine that protrudes from the underside of each cerci, the Common Baskettail does not
  • Black Saddlebags
  • Both the Common Baskettail and Black Saddlebags have large dark wing patches
  • The Black Saddlebag's wing patches are larger witha clear window that the Common Baskettail does not have
  • Common Baskettail vs Beaverpond Baskettail
  • Click on the photo to see side by side comparisons
  • Common Baskettail vs Spiny Baskettail
  • Click on the photo to see side by side comparisons
  • Common Baskettail vs Black saddlebags
  • Click on the photo to see side by side comparisons

Natural History

Behavior

Males patrol over the water and along the shoreline in territorial flights of up to about 30 feet, stopping often, for a few seconds, to hover. Feeding often takes place in swarms usually around head height and above

Habitat

Marshy ponds and lakes, also mucky pools in slow moving streams

Reproduction

Mating occurs in flight. Females produce eggs which accumulate on the end of their abdomen, like a tiny basket, while the female looks for a suitable location to oviposit. She will look for a location with aquatic vegetation, often floating on the water, where she will dip her abdomen in and release the 'basket' of eggs which become long strings in the water. Often more than one female will oviposit in the same location

Range Maps

Click on the icons above for this species' range maps

Click here for county and state checklists from Odonata Central.

Range maps and checklists courtesy of Odonata Central. Copyright © 2016 OdonataCentral. All Rights Reserved. Abbott, J.C. 2006-2018. OdonataCentral: An online resource for the distribution and identification of Odonata. Available at www.odonatacentral.org.