The Globe Skimmer (Pantala flavescens), also called the globe wanderer or wandering glider, is a wide-ranging dragonfly of the family Libellulidae. This species and the spot-winged glider (Pantala hymenaea), are the only members of the genus Pantala from the subfamily Pantalinae. It was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1798. It is considered to be the most widespread dragonfly on the planet with good population on every continent except Antarctica although rare in Europe. Globe skimmers make an annual multigenerational journey of some 18,000 km (about 11,200 miles); to complete the migration, individual globe skimmers fly more than 6,000 km (3,730 miles)—one of the farthest known migrations of all insect species.
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