The azure damselfly has a body length of about 30 mm. Males are bright blue and black with dark blue eyes. Characteristically the second abdominal segment is patterned with a black U shape and the blue ninth abdominal segment has a black encircling crown posteriorly. Females have the same patterning as the males but their abdomens are predominantly black with a very thin blue line down both flanks. It lacks the inverted U of the male.
Azure damselflies spend much of their time sunning themselves on waterside vegetation. They rest and wait for an insect to approach and then fly rapidly to catch them in the air. They have large eyes which allow them to accurately pin-point the position of their prey, which is caught with the damselfly’s legs and eaten at rest.
The photograph of the azure damselfly was taken at a pond in the park ‘Grün 99’.