Coenagrionidae

a family of damselflies of the suborder Zygoptera. The insects are small and usually light blue in coloration. The wings are petiolate, and the abdomen is thin. The seven genera, which comprise about 1,000 species, occur primarily in the tropics. There are 39 species in the USSR. The insects live near freshwater bodies. The female lays eggs only when the male is present; the eggs are deposited in the tissues of aquatic plants. The larvae develop amid thickets situated near the shore. The flies are predators, feeding on small insects, such as bloodsucking dipterons.