Lookalikes

Just recently I learnt the differences between the Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) and the Ruddy darter (Sympetrum sanguinemum). From a distance (and before you study the picture at home afterwards) they look very much alike. But I had the same trouble to see the difference between some other insects, and therefore I present a little guide to lookalikes. I already wrote a blog on some of the insects before.

Spotted Burnets

Let’s start with something very easy. By just counting the spots on the wings, you know which one it is; either a Five-spot Burnet (Zygaena Trifolii) or a Six-spot Burnet (Zygaena Filipendulae), both of the family of the Zygaenidae.

They are actually moths, but they can be seen at daytime. They both visit a range of flowers and can sometimes be seen together on one flower.

Unfortunately I’ve only got pictures of the six-spotted . The one that has a similar look from a distance however is the Cinnabar Moth (Tyria jacobaeae) as shown on the right.

Skippers

It took me quite a while, before I could distinguish between the Large Skipper (Ochlodes Sylvanus) and the Small Skipper (Thymelicus Sylvestris), both of the family of the Hesperiidae. Because they are quite small and almost equal in size. Their colours are just the same and you even find them together in the same habitat. The most obvious difference is the pattern of the light brown markings on their orange wings. The Large Skipper has a more chequered pattern whereas the Small Skipper has thin, prolonged  lines.

Blues

So far, I have only see the Common Blue (Polyommatus Icarus) and the Holly blue (Celastrina Argiolus) of the blue members of the family of Lycaenidae. From a distance they are just rays of bright fluttering blue , but even when you take a picture, you already see the difference. The pictures below should speak for itself.

Blue-coloured Dragonflies

There are two blue-coloured male dragonflies that very much look alike as well: The Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa) and the Black-tailed Skimmer (Orthetrum cancellatum). I have been mistaken several times, but I think I got it now. For the Broad-bodied Chaser has typical yellow patches on its abdomen but the Black-tailed Skimmer, more importantly, has a black colouring at its tail.

Red-coloured Dragonflies

But now something more complicated: the Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) vs. the Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum). There are three features that distinguish the Common from the Ruddy:

1. The Common Darter is bigger.
2. The Common Darter has yellow diagonal stripes on its legs and the Rudy Darter has all-black legs.
3. The Rudy Darter has yellow/gold colouring at the base of its wings.

The picture on the right shows the black legs and the golden wing base of the Ruddy Darter quite well. The picture on top of this blog shows the other darter’s features, I believe.

 

 

But to convince ourselves, I will end this blog with another picture of the beautiful and very “uncommon” Common Darter.