Formosan jewelwing
Male Formosan jewelwings gleam metallic blue over a green body, while females carry a small white false wing spot near the tip of an otherwise plain, dark brown wing.
| Where | Shaded forest streams in mountains |
|---|---|
| Size | 62 to 67 mm body length |
| When | April to November |
Males have a green thorax and abdomen washed with a metallic blue sheen and wholly metallic blue wings, while females are metallic green with a green or dull brown abdomen and dark brown wings marked by a small white false wing spot.
Adults perch on leaf tips over shallow forest streams at low mountain elevations, darting out from these lookouts after passing insects and returning to the same perch between flights.
Traits
Habitat
Woodland
Colour
Green, Blue, Brown
Active
Day
To people
Perches over streams and rarely approaches people; does not bite or sting.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Males are brilliant metallic green rather than blue, and females are reddish brown rather than green or dull brown, and it lives on the East Asian mainland rather than Taiwan.
Questions
Is the Formosan jewelwing dangerous to people?
Perches over streams and rarely approaches people; does not bite or sting.
When can you see the Formosan jewelwing?
The Formosan jewelwing can be seen from April to November, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by Cynthia Su, CC BY 4.0, iNaturalist Licence
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Dragonflies and damselflies›Demoiselles›Matrona
Last updated 2026-09-27. Every entry is checked against published sources.