Posts in Category: Odonata
Green Darners!
Green Darner: Kennebunk, Maine, USA — I go years between photos of a Green Darner…they just about never perch while I am around…but this is my second one for this year. I found a male settled out on the shore at the Sanford Lagoons last month, and this mating and ovipositing pair at the Southern Maine Medical Center drainage ponds this past weekend. There was a little window through the foreground reeds that opened and closed with the breeze. Nikon B700 at 917mm equivalent (they were close enough to overfill the frame at full zoom). Shutter program at 1/400th. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
White (or Cherry)-faced Meadowhawk
White- or Cherry-faced Meadowhawk, Emmon’s Preserve, Kennebunkport, Maine, USA — Meadowhawk season is coming on here in Southern Maine. This is what might best be called a “light-faced meadowhawk”…in Maine it is most likely a White-faced or a Cherry-faced, but it could also be a Ruby Meadowhawk. Authorities say only microscopic examination of the reproductive parts can reliably distinguish these species…and there is some debate as to whether they are indeed separate species. DNA work is inconclusive at best…with the variations being very small and annoyingly inconsistent. Whatever. As a “light-faced meadowhawk” it is a striking creature. I expect to see increasing numbers of them from now right into autumn. Nikon B700 at 1440mm equivalent. Shutter program at 1/400th. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Sometimes it is not only about the dragonfly…
Slaty Skimmer: Alwive Pond, Kennebunk, Maine, USA — I think most dragonflies are beautiful…in a steampunk kind of way…but sometimes dragonfly photography is not all about the dragonfly. This Slaty Skimmer kept perching on the pickerel weed which makes a dense mat in the waters along the shore of Alwive Pond in Kennebunk Maine, and I could not resist taking way too many photos, trying to capture the contrast, both in color and structure, between the dragon and the delicate flowers…it was only in processing that I discovered the beauty of the background…which really “makes” the shot. Nikon B700 at 1440mm equivalent. Shutter mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Eastern Pondhawk
Eastern Pondhawk: One off my favorite dragonflies! I like the subtle change from blue to green and I really appreciate the little green dots on the hind side of the eyes. 🙂 It is a bonus that they perch so nicely for photos. I am seeing quite a few pondhawks this season, everywhere from the mucky drainage ponds at Southern Maine Medical Center to the clear clean waters of Day Brook Pond on the Kennebunk Plains…so they do not seem to as fussy about water as some of the dragons. Nikon B700 at 1440mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Strange perch fellows!
Spangled and Slaty Skimmers: Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area, Kennebunk, Maine, USA — These two dragonflies are both highly competitive and fiercely territorial, so it is strange to see them sharing the same perch. It was an unusually hot day for Southern Maine, and I suppose any perch in a heat wave, but still… Nikon B700 at just over 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications for this camera. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Business end of Slaty Skimmer
Slaty Skimmer: Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area, Kennebunk, Maine, USA — It was unusually hot yesterday for southern Maine, and there were lots of the common dragonflies out and active at Day Brook Pond. Slaty Skimmers now outnumber Spangled, but both are still there in good numbers. Perhaps because of the heat, the Slatys were perching a lot…and this one landed too close for a telephoto shot. I decided to see how close it would let me get and switched to macro focus on my Nikon B700, flipped out the LCD so I could see, and leaned in. This was taken at 97mm equivalent, at the outer limit of the macro focus, from about 4 inches. Not an identification shot, but interesting all the same. 🙂 Program mode and processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Pygmy Clubtail
Northern Pygmy Clubtail (?): Branch Brook, Kennebunk, Maine, USA. — It is always fun to find a new (to me) dragonfly on my rambles around the back roads of York County Maine. Every time I cross Branch Brook on my eTadpole recumbent trike, which is generally at least once a week as the bridge is on one of my “go to” exercise loops, I think that I should stop and explore the stream for dragonflies…and yesterday, since I was in no great hurry in the unaccustomed heat, I finally did it. I only found two dragonflies, a female Ebony Jewelwing, and this tiny clubtail, which is new to me. Looking at the photos, and considering the location, it is clearly a Pygmy Clubtail, and I am pretty sure it is a Northern. However, the watershed where I found it is one of the few with a confirmed presence of Southern Pygmy Clubtail in Maine, and my AI tools consistently ID it as Southern. To my eye there is more than one strip on the thorax, which, according to Paulson, makes it Northern…but I can not be 100% sure. Anyone who knows better is welcome to chime in. Nikon B700 at 135mm macro and 1440mm telephoto equivalents. Program mode. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Common Green Darner
Common Green Darner: Sanford Lagoons, Sanford, Maine, USA — Not a great photo as I was at a fair distance and shooting through obstructive foreground plants, but, in my experience, a rare photo. I never…well, almost never…see Common Green Darner perched. They seem to be in perpetual flight, at least during daylight hours. I have a few shots of Green Darner mating wheels, and one of a Green Darner female ovipositing…but this might be only individual I have seen just settled out and resting in many years of looking. And, of course, when I tried to work my way down the bank for a less obstructed view, it was off instantly. Even in flight the Common Green Darner is hard to miss. It is not the largest Dragonfly in North America…the Giant Darner of the Southwest is bigger…but it is certainly the largest we have here in the Northeast, and that green body and bright blue abdomen stand out in almost any light. Nikon B700 at 1440mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Just for fun! Spangled Skimmer. Happy Father’s Day!
Spangled Skimmer: Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area, Kennebunk, Maine, USA — I have mentioned that the Spangled Skimmer is one of my favorite dragonflies. This is not a good identification photo. I have lots of those. But this is among my favorite photos of a favorite dragonfly. The “Hay, what’s up?” pose, the angle of the light, and the interesting background just combine to make me smile. And a smile is good on a Sunday, Father’s Day. I hope all you fathers are smiling…and all you children of fathers as well. Nikon B700 at 1440mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.
Slaty Skimmer
Slaty Skimmer: Day Brook Pond, Kennebunk Plains Wildlife Management Area, Kennebunk, Maine, USA — Evidently they Spangled Skimmers fly before the Saltys…as we have had Spangled for at least a week at the pond, before I saw my first Slaty yesterday. Now that the Saltys are flying, they will dominate the pond for months, outnumbered only by the smaller Calico Skimmers. Nikon B700 at 1440mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.