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Illinois River Cruiser (Swift River Cruiser)
Macromia illinoiensis
The
Cruisers, family Macromiidae, are damn fast. And check out those stunning
green eyes. There are four species of
Macromia in Arkansas. I think it is a
toss-up as to whether this species or the Royal River Cruiser is the most
common. The other two are not easily found. This Illinois jet may be the
fastest of the lot. They zip along the surfaces of creeks and ponds at
impressive speeds. Tracking over racing oval stretches of thirty to fifty yards of
water surface. They look black at high speeds but occasionally the light
reflects on those green goggles. You can make out some yellow
markings if you scan quickly or focus until you get a headache. Catching them
in the net is no easy feat. And photographing them at rest may be virtually
impossible. Though one can occasionally stumble upon one dangling vertically
from a stem near creeks and bayous. They scare easily from their resting spots and then go
madly off again at high speed.
The
Illinois can be told by those two larger spots on the last segments of the
abdomen. The Royal lacks these. (See Royal page.) The third species, the
Allegheny River Cruiser, has the spots as well but one of them is reduced. I
have never seen the Allegheny in Arkansas. Dunkle snuck over from Texas and found them.
They may only occur in a few limited creek drainages. George Harp, Arkansas'
resident dragon expert, has them only from Montgomery County.
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