Rare. Adults have been recorded from mid May to mid July. There are confirmed records from Killarney lakes and Glengarriff, Co. Cork. It has only been seen once at the latter. An additional record from Galway is still unconfirmed. Most of the records are from the Upper Lake area of Killarney. The Downy Emerald breeds in Ireland in small mesotrophic lakes.

This species is similar to the Northern Emerald Somatochlora arctica, which has also been recorded from Killarney National Park, Co Kerry. However the latter species is much darker and males have distinctive caliper-shaped anal appendages. In the Northern Emerald there are also distinct pear-shaped yellow markings on the second abdominal segment.

KEY IDENTIFICATION FEATURES

• Dark greenish-bronze abdomen and downy green thorax
• Mature specimens have bright green eyes
• Males have a constricted waist and a club-shaped abdomen