The Azure Hawker is one of the smaller species of hawker dragonflies

Dragonfly

A dragonfly is a winged insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera . It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body...

, (family Aeshnidae

Aeshnidae

The hawkers include the largest dragonflies found in North America and Europe, and are among the largest of the dragonflies on the planet...

). The flight period is from late May to August

It is 62 mm long. Both sexes have azure blue

Azure (color)

The color bleu de France is displayed at right.Bleu de France is a color that has been associated in heraldry with the Kings of France since the 12th century.-Brandeis blue:...

 spots on each abdominal segment and the thorax also has azure markings. The markings on the male are brighter and more conspicuous than in the female. The female also has a brown colour form.

This species flies in sunshine, and will also bask on stones or tree trunks. It shelters in heather or similar low vegetation in dull weather.

The species is widespread in the Eurasia

Eurasia

Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...

n polar region

Polar region

Earth's polar regions are the areas of the globe surrounding the poles also known as frigid zones. The North Pole and South Pole being the centers, these regions are dominated by the polar ice caps, resting respectively on the Arctic Ocean and the continent of Antarctica...

. In Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

, the Azure Hawker occurs only in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.