English name:  Dark-winged Groundling

Like all members of the family Libellulidae, the male of the road groundling also tends to stand in a conspicuous place for long hours, usually at the same lookout point to which he will return even if disturbed. While standing like this, he waits for a female to pass through his territory..­

Size:  small (3-4 cm).
Habitat: standing waters and slow-flowing streams
The groundlings tend to gather on roads. And even when they are flushed from their resting place, they will rise a short distance and return to land on the road. Hence their name.
Distribution:  only in the Middle East: Iraq, Israel, Turkey, Jordan, Syria and Kuwait.

Season:  May- end of September (according to data from Turkey).  
In Israel it has become extinct, and has not been seen for many decades. It is still present in neighboring countries and there is a chance of occasional individuals in the country.

Identification marks:
Male-  all its body is black.
The wings are black over two-thirds of their length, and only the outer third is transparent (diagnostic feature)
The pterostigma is yellow and uniform. (diagnostic feature)
 Female- all her body is sandy brown.
The wings are completely transparent.
Very similar to the female of Road Groundling, the thorax pattern is less prominent, and the uniform yellow pterostigma is a reliable field identification mark.

The young resemble the females.

Similar species:
Male- has a unique appearance and cannot be confused with any other species.
Female- almost all females of the family Libellulidae are very similar and one must pay attention to details to distinguish between them. Differs from the Road Groundling in the color of the pterostigma.