![](http://lh6.ggpht.com/ms6wood/SKABNwPy0FI/AAAAAAAACG8/qmiAU9y4LY8/s400/P8019006_Blog.jpg)
Juvenile Male Blue Dasher
Blue Dasher Dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis)
Range: Much of the United States, and just edging into Canada. In the United States, absent from the Dakotas and the Rocky Mountain region. Range continues into Mexico.
Habitat: Ponds, lakes, marshes, and bogs. Can be found almost anywhere there is still water. Larva is highly tolerant of wetlands with poor water quality and low dissolved-oxygen levels.
Male and female Blue Dashers are marked differently. However, young males are marked like females and change into a typical male coloration as they reach adulthood.
BugGuide has an excellent Blue Dasher resource page with dozens of photo showing various stages of male and female development.
![](http://lh5.ggpht.com/ms6wood/SKAAY2Z55NI/AAAAAAAACG0/Baw7T9JhoZU/s400/P8029109_Blog.jpg)
Female Blue Dasher Dragonfly
.