The Common Baskettail is a small, brown dragonfly with a black-spotted abdomen that forms large feeding swarms over fields and forest edges in spring, hawking small insects with precision. Females have a distinctive behavior of flying while dragging a sticky ball of eggs through the water to deposit them on aquatic plants. It is one of the most common early-season dragonflies.
Habitat
Ponds, lakes, and slow streams; also fields during feeding swarms
Diet
Adults: small insects caught in aerial swarms. Nymphs: aquatic invertebrates
How common
Common
Recent Common Baskettail sightings near you
Live, research-grade observations from iNaturalist. Allow location to center the map on you.
Spot a Common Baskettail? Identify it instantly.
Point Huck at any plant or animal and get an instant ID, rarity, and field notes — building your personal nature collection as you go.
Get Huck — free