Tyriobapta torrida Kirby

Tyriobapta torrida Kirby, 1889 Tree-hugging Dragonfly
Found in Asia: China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand
Sub-Order: ANISOPTERA	Super-Family: LIBELLULOIDEA	Family: LIBELLULIDAE

Among the 3 Tyriobapta species, the most abundant and widespread species is Tyriobapta torrida . It is the largest member of the genus and the males are recognized by the broad, slightly metallic bluish-black area at the base of the hind wings. It is found from the lowlands to about 600 m. Both sexes perch vertically on tree trunks which they defend against all comers, perhaps in order to maintain feeding territories. Tyriobapta torrida are mainly confined to forested swampy areas.

Towards the middle of the day it is common to see males racing back and forth over small pools, chasing each other and mating with females as they arrive to oviposit.

This pair of Tyriobapta torrida were caught in tandem on 22 August 2007 in National Park of Tawau.

Tyriobapta torrida is normally spotted on tree trunk in shady environment.

For unknown reason, Tyriobapta torrida likes hugging tree trunks. Even when disturbed, it will hover away only briefly and return just as promptly. The male (displaying a large black patch at the base of both hind-wings) are always found to be gregarious.


Female Tyriobapta torrida	Male Tyriobapta torrida

	Tyriobapta torrida is the most widespread species among the 3 Tyriobapta species in Sabah. . It is found in the lowlands forested swampy areas. Both male and female perch vertically on tree trunks which they defend against all comers.
	The males are easily identified by this broad, slightly metallic bluish-black area at the base of the hind wings
	A male Tyriobapta torrida is rather ordinary and dull in color with no unique marking on the thorex. It is only the metallic black area at the hind wings that make it looks attractive.
	Segment 2 of a matured male Tyriobapta torrida with a pair of extended hamulus. The hamulus is a pair of hooks situated at segment 2 used to hold the female’s genitalia during copulation. The hamulus is also a set of “surgical tool” that a male uses for removing sperm left by other males during previous mating.

A female Tyriobapta torrida.

This is a medium size dragonfly measuring :
Hind wing span = 64mm
Whole body length = 36mm

	View from top of a female Tyriobapta torrida. The pair of eyes are pale grayish-green with pigmented brown facets (ommatidia) on the top part..
	Thorax marking of a matured female. White pruinescence (white powder like) developed over the black thorax marking. This make a matured female look dull in color appearance.
	A female Tyriobapta torrida with eggs. This female was captured in pair while they were copulating. It was amazing to see segment 9 full of eggs sticking together. Just how many eggs this female could possible have? A female spend about 10 minutes in ovipositing by depositing an egg each time the abdomen tip touch the water at a speed of 3 deposit per 2 seconds. So it is about 300 eggs during each 10 minutes session and a female could have several sessions of ovipositng during her life span. That calculated to more that 1,000 eggs a female Tyriobapta torrida could possible produce during her short life.
	The same female as above. With a segment full of eggs ready to be fertilized before ovipositing, this female already has done a previous batch of ovipositing. This is indicated on her abdominal tip. From the photo, segment 9 and 10 have half of the abdominal fur (tinny hair) being worn off leaving bare smooth dark skin visible. The smooth part of the abdomen is the tip of the abdomen this female dragonfly used to touch the water surface while dropping the eggs. Repeating hitting the water to completed dropping the few hundred eggs caused this poor mother to worn out her body.

Disclaimer: The Dragonflies of Sabah is an educational resource written largely by and for SMK (secondary school) students in Malaysia. TDS doesn't cover all species in Sabah, nor does it include all the latest scientific information. Though we edit our pages for accuracy, we cannot guarantee all information in these pages. While we provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable, we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control.

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