---
title: "Great Blue Skimmer"
description: "Libellula vibrans — Insects & spiders. The great blue skimmer (Libellula vibrans) is a dragonfly of the skimmer family."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/great-blue-skimmer
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Great Blue Skimmer

> Libellula vibrans — Insects & spiders. The great blue skimmer (Libellula vibrans) is a dragonfly of the skimmer family.

- Scientific name: *Libellula vibrans*
- Category: `insects` (Insects & spiders)
- Habitats: `freshwater` (Lakes & rivers)
- iNaturalist observations: 25651
- Wikidata: [Q147396](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q147396)
- iNaturalist taxon: [104586](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/104586)

## Names

- en: Great Blue Skimmer

## Countries with the most observations

US (23821), CA (50)

## Summary

The great blue skimmer (Libellula vibrans) is a dragonfly of the skimmer family. With a total length of 50 to 63 millimetres (2.0 to 2.5 in), it is one of the largest skimmers. The immature forms of the skimmer are brown in color and mature forms are blue-hued. This species is found near lakes, ponds, and slow streams in the eastern United States and rarely in southern Ontario.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_blue_skimmer

## Photo

![Great Blue Skimmer](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/great-blue-skimmer/medium.jpg)

Photo: Brady Reed · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/13375275

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/great-blue-skimmer?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).