The beautiful rubyspot damselfly is difficult to mistake for any other species in California. If you have a damselfly with a brightly colored thorax and a bright red spot at the base of the wings, you have an American Rubyspot. It is easily recognized by its size (2.5 inches long).

Males usually have a bright metallic red thorax, with creamy colored striping. Occasionally the male's coloration is more of a reddish bronze than bright red. Females have green metallic thoraxes, or else bronzy green. The spot at the base of the wings is usually bright red in the male. Females may have a red spot too, but more often their spot is a subtle amber.

Don't hang around ponds looking for this one. While occasionally found at large lakes, its most typical habitat is a sunny riverbank. The American Rubyspot is common along rushing streams. You will find American Rubyspots perched on plants along the bank, or on emergent rocks in the river itself. Males are typically found sitting on rocks or logs in the middle of a stream, wing-flicking for females.