The Dragonflies and Damselflies of North Carolina
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Once on a species account page, clicking on the "View PDF" link will show the flight data for that species, for each of the three regions of the state.
Other information, such as high counts and earliest/latest dates, can also been seen on the PDF page.
Show Recent Account Updates        Show Recent Occurrence Entries Status Codes
 
Related Species in GOMPHIDAE: Number of records for 2018 = 21

PDF has more details,
e.g., flight data, high counts, and earliest/latest dates can be seen.
[View PDF]		 Cobra Clubtail by Ricky Davis
Move the cursor over the image to reveal Identification Tips.
Compare with: Gomphurus dilatatus
Note: these identification tips apply specifically to mature males; features may differ in immature males and in females.

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sciName Gomphurus vastus
mapClick on county for list of all its records for Cobra Clubtail
distribution Widely scattered over the western two-thirds of the state, east barely into the western Coastal Plain. Interestingly, nearly all of the mountain and western Piedmont records have come in the past few years, suggesting a possible westward range expansion in the state, though most range maps show the species ranging over the majority of the eastern United States. Likely absent at middle and higher elevations in the mountains. A puzzling scarcity of records from the middle of this range in the state -- such as the central and western Piedmont.
abundance Uncommon in the eastern Piedmont. Rare to very locally uncommon elsewhere in the mountains and Piedmont. Very rare in the western part of the Coastal Plain.
flight Mostly early May to late June or early July, with an early date of 20 April. A seemingly quite late record on 8 August is open to question, though there are a few records for mid-July.
habitat Breeds at rivers and large streams, where rocky or with riffles.
behavior Males perch along the shore on the ground, or on rocks in the rivers. They may fly well out over the rivers.
comments This is a very striking species, quite black on the abdomen with very contrasting yellow markings. And, the male's club is very wide -- cobra-like, giving rise to the common name. Even so, there are a few other clubtails (such as Skillet, Splendid, and Blackwater) with wide clubs, and thus sight records must be made with care. Indeed, a few photos on this website have been re-evaluated by experts (in late 2016), and several photos reported as other species have been determined to be Cobra Clubtails by website editors/reviewers.
state_status
S_rank S3S4
fed_status
G_rank G5
synonym Gomphus vastus
other_name
Species account update: LeGrand

Photo Gallery for Cobra Clubtail

 Other NC Galleries:    Jeff Pippen    Will Cook    Ted Wilcox
Photo by: Ricky Davis

Comment: Haw River, 2007-05-26, male		Photo by: Beth Brinson

Comment: Yadkin, 2008-06-10, PIMO-Lower YRSS
Photo by: Beth Brinson

Comment: Surry, 2008-06-28, PIMO-YRSN - Female		Photo by: Matthew Daw

Comment: Wake, 2009-06-02, FALA - Neuse River, approximately one mile below dam
Photo by: Ali Iyoob, Matt Daw, Dan Irizarry

Comment: Madison, 2011-05-06, French Broad River		Photo by: Vin Stanton

Comment: Buncombe, 2011-06-14, imaged along French Broad River Northern Buncombe County
Photo by: Steve Hall

Comment: Montgomery, 2011-06-14, Uwharrie River		Photo by: Steve Hall

Comment: Montgomery, 2011-06-02, Uwharrie River
Photo by: Vin Stanton

Comment: Buncombe, 2012-05-02, River park in Asheville - Male & Female		Photo by: Vin Stanton

Comment: Buncombe, 2012-05-02, River park in Asheville - Male & Female
Photo by: Vin Stanton

Comment: Buncombe, 2012-05-02, River park in Asheville - Male & Female		Photo by: Vin Stanton, Doug Johnston, Gail Lankford, Janie Owen

Comment: Madison, 2012-05-17, French Broad River, Pisgah National Forest - Female
Photo by: Vin Stanton, Doug Johnston, Gail Lankford, Janie Owen

Comment: Madison, 2012-06-15, North of Hot Springs on River Road-French Broad River - Male		Photo by: Vin Stanton, Doug Johnston, Gail Lankford, Janie Owen

Comment: Madison, 2012-06-15, North of Hot Springs on River Road-French Broad River - Male
Photo by: Janie Owens

Comment: Madison, 2015-06-18, Along French Broad River near Hot Springs - eating a Green-faced Clubtail		Photo by: Janie Owens

Comment: Madison, 2015-06-18, Along French Broad River near Hot Springs - eating a Green-faced Clubtail
Photo by: J. A. Anderson

Comment: Surry, 2015-06-14, PIMO		Photo by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin

Comment: Madison, 2016-07-12, Resting on a shrub along the French Broad River near Hot Springs.
Photo by: John Petranka, Jim Petranka

Comment: Ashe, 2016-05-23, New River State Park Wagoner Access; trail along river. Female. Photo.		Photo by: Ricky Davis

Comment: Chatham, 2007-05-26, male
Photo by: Mark Shields, Hunter Phillips

Comment: Union, 2017-05-15, Rocky River at Randolph Landing, Rocky River Blueway Access and Nature Park		Photo by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin

Comment: Madison, 2017-05-20, On concrete bridge at junction of the Ivy River and French Broad River.
Photo by: B. Bockhahn

Comment: Surry, 2017-05-17, 		Photo by: M. Turner, J. Daigle, T. Schoch, S. Daniel, K. Larsen

Comment: Harnett; P, 2018-05-10, Cape Fear River Trail; Erwin, NC\r\n - ad.males
Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Alleghany, 2018-05-19, New River @ SR 1345 (Farmers Fish Camp Rd.) - all tenerals; at least 10 Gomphurus emerging but too young to be xure of species		Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Alleghany, 2018-05-19, New River @ SR 1345 (Farmers Fish Camp Rd.) - all tenerals; at least 10 Gomphurus emerging but too young to be xure of species
Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Alleghany, 2018-05-19, New River @ SR 1345 (Farmers Fish Camp Rd.) - all tenerals; at least 10 Gomphurus emerging but too young to be xure of species		Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Surry, 2018-06-10, Crater Park, Yadkin River, Elkin
Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Surry, 2018-06-10, Crater Park, Yadkin River, Elkin		Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Yadkin, 2018-06-23, Pilot Mountain S.P.-Yadkin River Section
Photo by: Richard Stickney

Comment: Yadkin, 2018-06-24, Park at Yadkin River/NC 67 - all females		Photo by: Mark Shields

Comment: Richmond; C, 2018-07-06, Pee Dee River; 2 km stretch upstream from Diggs Tract Access, by kayak - males. First record for county.
Photo by: Mark Shields

Comment: Anson, 2018-07-06, Pee Dee River; 2 km stretch upstream from Diggs Tract Access, by kayak		Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Alleghany, 2018-07-15, New River @ SR 1345 (Farmers Fish Camp Rd.)
Photo by: Mike Turner

Comment: Yadkin, 2018-07-20, Pilot Mountain S.P.; river section