Seaside Dragonlet

Seaside Dragonlet

Erythrodiplax berenice

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible
at Everglades National Park

In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%

261 Verified sightings at Everglades National Park From 2019 to 2026
720 In all 7 parks
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Seaside Dragonlet

Erythrodiplax berenice, commonly known as the seaside dragonlet, is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae. It is found mainly at coastal marshes, mangrove swamps, and alkaline lakes of eastern North America. It is unique among dragonflies of the western hemisphere in that it can breed in seawater.

The seaside dragonlet is a relatively small, slender-bodied skimmer. Males reach a uniform black at maturity, which is then overlaid with waxy pruinosity. Their eyes are dark red on top with a gradient to light green below. Females have a similar dark red to light green-gray eye color gradient, but their body coloration is much more variable than the males'. The thorax usually has a lemon yellow to orange background with many black stripes, but some have an entirely black thorax. The abdomen is often black (sometimes gold or orange) on the first three segments (S1-S3) and on the final segments (S8-S10). The middle segments (S4-S7) are then often orange above and black below, forming a chainlike pattern of orange. Some common female color patterns include: mostly bright orange on thorax and abdomen; black thorax with bright orange abdomen (aging to a masculine... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 🇺🇸 United States
~40%
2 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~30%
3 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~30%
4 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
5 Ciénaga de Zapata 🇨🇺 Cuba
~20%
6 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
7 Acadia National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 New York City 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
2 Miami 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
3 Boston 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Seaside Dragonlet in Everglades National Park?

Possible

About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Seaside Dragonlet sighting in Everglades National Park on a given day, based on 261 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 15th most-seen of the 496 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Seaside Dragonlet in Everglades National Park?

May and July–August

In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Seaside Dragonlet in Everglades National Park on a given day, against about 10% in December and January, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Seaside Dragonlet?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Seaside Dragonlet sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Everglades National Park the best place to see a Seaside Dragonlet?

2nd of 7

Of the 7 parks where we can rate Seaside Dragonlet sightings, Everglades National Park ranks 2nd at about 30%. The best odds are in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (United States, about 40%).

Which relatives of the Seaside Dragonlet live in Everglades National Park?

Same genus: Erythrodiplax

The closest relatives of the Seaside Dragonlet that you can see in Everglades National Park (genus Erythrodiplax, Dragonlets) are Band-Winged Dragonlet (about 40%) and Little Blue Dragonlet (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Seaside Dragonlet sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Seaside Dragonlet is recorded against all the insects logged in Everglades National Park (261 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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