Broad scarlet
Mature males turn an intense scarlet red all over, including the wing veins, which is unusually saturated coloring for a dragonfly.
| Where | Sunny ponds, lakes and slow rivers |
|---|---|
| Size | 55 to 71 mm wingspan |
| When | May to September |
Males have a broad, flattened, bright scarlet abdomen with red wing veins and amber patches at the base of the hindwings, while females and young males are yellow-brown with a pale stripe along the top of the thorax. Body length is about 33 to 44 mm.
It breeds in still and slow-moving waters that are open to full sun, and as a strong disperser it regularly turns up well beyond its core range, including as an occasional vagrant far north of the warm regions where it normally breeds.
Traits
Habitat
Wetland
Colour
Red, Yellow
Active
Day
To people
Harmless
Activity through the year
Often confused with
The ruddy darter has a narrower, waisted abdomen rather than the broad scarlet's flattened, widened shape, and its red tone is duller and less uniform.
Questions
Is the Broad scarlet dangerous to people?
The Broad scarlet is harmless to people.
When can you see the Broad scarlet?
The Broad scarlet can be seen from May to September, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons Licence
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Dragonflies and damselflies›Skimmers›Crocothemis
Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.