Rapids clubtail
Scientific name: Phanogomphus quadricolor
Cover photos credit: Glenn Corbiere (all photos)
Status
Endangered
“Endangered” means the species lives in the wild in Ontario but is facing imminent extinction or extirpation.
Date added to the Species at Risk in Ontario List
September 10, 2009
What it looks like
The Rapids clubtail is a relatively small, 42 to 45 millimetre-long and brightly coloured dragonfly. Its eyes are bluish-green, with a light yellowish-green face that is striped with two dark lines, a brownish-black and yellowish-green striped body and transparent wings.
Like all dragonflies, the Rapids clubtail begins its life as an aquatic larva and transforms into a winged adult during the summer.
Where it lives
The Rapids clubtail is typically found in clear, cool medium-to-large rivers with gravel shallows and muddy pools.
Larvae occupy quiet muddy pools. Adult males perch on exposed rocks and other projections in the rapids.
Males are quite territorial and make short flights over the water, repeatedly returning to the same perch.
Adult females typically inhabit forests along riverbanks, and only visit shallows and pools when they are ready to mate and lay eggs.
Where it’s been found in Ontario
The Rapids clubtail is a globally rare to uncommon species found throughout eastern North America. Within this range the species and its habitat are locally distributed and there are large areas where the species does not occur.
Most populations of the Rapids clubtail are located in the U.S. Midwest, but range extends from northern Alabama and Georgia to southern Ontario, and from Maine to eastern Minnesota.
In Ontario, the Rapids clubtail has only been found in four rivers in southern and eastern Ontario: the Thames, Humber, Credit and Mississippi.
View a Larger version of this map (PDF)
What threatens it
The primary threat to the Rapids clubtail is the degradation of river habitats. Activities which impede or alter the quantity and quality of water in the rivers, such as dams and pollution pose threats.
Such degradation has led to the apparent demise of this species on the Credit River and the decline of the population on the Humber River.
Action we are taking
Endangered Species and their general habitat are automatically protected
Recovery strategy
A recovery strategy advises the ministry on ways to ensure healthy numbers of the species return to Ontario.
Read the executive summary (September 10, 2010)
Read the recovery strategy (September 10, 2010)
Government response statement
A government response statement outlines the actions the government intends to take or support to help recover the species.
Read the government response statement (June 15, 2011)
Five-Year Review of Progress
A five-year review reports on progress made toward protecting and recovering a species, within five years of publishing a species’ government response statement.
Read the report on progress towards the protection and recovery of 27 species at risk, including Rapids Clubtail (2016).
Habitat protection
A habitat regulation defines a species' habitat and many describe features (e.g., a creek, cliff, or beach), geographic boundaries or other unique characteristics.
Read the habitat summary (July 1, 2012)
Read the regulation (July 1, 2012)
What you can do
Report a sighting
- Report a sighting of an endangered animal or plant to the Natural Heritage Information Centre. Photographs with specific locations or mapping coordinates are always helpful.
Volunteer
- volunteer with your local nature club or provincial park to participate in surveys or stewardship work focused on species at risk
- don’t disturb or harass wildlife; be respectful and observe from a distance
Be a good steward
- private land owners have a very important role to play in species recovery; if you find Rapids clubtail on your land, you may be eligible for stewardship programs that support the protection and recovery of species at risk and their habitats
- soil erosion and runoff is a source of pollutants such as fertilizers and pesticides to watercourses in Ontario; there are many things that you can do to help reduce these effects and you might even be eligible for funding assistance; for more information on these and other programs, contact the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association
- invasive species seriously threaten many of Ontario’s species at risk; to learn what you can do to help reduce the threat of invasive species, visit:
Report illegal activity
Report any illegal activity related to plants and wildlife to
Quick facts
- adult Rapids clubtails only live for three to four weeks, between early June and mid-July
- larvae bury themselves under a fine layer of sediment and ‘breathe’ through the exposed tip of their abdomen