Bug FAQDragonhunter
Hagenius brevistylus · Order: Odonata · Family: Gomphidae
The dragonhunter is a large clubtail dragonfly found in the eastern United States and southeastern Canada, measuring about 3.3 inches (84 mm). Males can be recognized by a distinctive sideways J-shaped abdomen while flying, and both sexes have black and yellow markings with green eyes. Adults hunt large insects, including other dragonflies and monarch butterflies, while the flat, slow-moving nymph lives among bark and leaf litter at stream edges.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
They have black and yellow patterning and green eyes. Males curl their abdomen under while flying, making a sideways J shape that can be seen from a distance.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
They are about 3.3 inches (84 mm) long, larger than any other North American clubtail.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults eat large insects such as darner and clubtail dragonflies, often ambushing them from above.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The nymph has a very flat, wide body and moves slowly among bark and leaf litter at stream edges, using its dark color for camouflage.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Their range includes the eastern United States and southeastern Canada.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Its closest relatives are Asian dragonflies of the genus Sieboldius, also called "dragonhunters"; together they form the subfamily Hageniinae.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 35 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Michigan, Ohio, Texas, Virginia, Tennessee, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in United States; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Same family (Gomphidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonhunter
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.