Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)

August 4th, 2014.

Male Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)

Walton County, GA

The pool by the creek is a good place to see dragonflies. Several were drinking while I was photographing the Eastern Yellowjacket. This Great Blue Skimmer landed just a couple of feet away.

Identification resource: 

- Libellula vibrans (Great Blue Skimmer)

Up Close And Personal... Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)

When I got back from the lake on Sunday, a couple of dragonflies were careening around the patio. One landed on the tip of a dead culm of a small bamboo plant. Chance for a photo shoot; too good to pass up. The great thing is that dragonflies have a favorite twig they’ll return to again and again and again… So I put my things down and crept back out with camera in hand. The first couple of shots were duds. Shooting a bright dragonfly against a dark background – overexposed!

So I sidled closer and took some more shots at an angle. I’m only a few feet away by this time. It’s a male Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans), one of my favorites.

With a few reasonable shots, time to live dangerously. I’ve found that some dragonflies don’t react to a camera lens held close to them whereas they will fly off if I move close. So I switched to macro and moved slowly to the left. I’ve learned to hold the camera at arms length, focus and shoot.

A ‘distance’ shot.

And then the really close up. I’m almost touching him with the lens.

He was quite patient. He did fly off a couple of times, circled around and came back to land less than a foot from me. A real treat!
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Identification resources:
- Dragonflies of Georgia: Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)
- BugGuide: Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans) [Male][Female]

Related post:
- Dragonfly: Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)

Dragonfly: Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)

The Great Blue Skimmer (GBS) is one of my favorite dragonflies. Last year I saw one on a dead branch hanging over the small pond W and j dug to provide water for frogs to breed in. The branch was long enough for me to get a photo that would let me identify it but not long enough to get me get a good photo. This year is different.

A branch of a Chinese Privet that the GBS really liked grew further out over the pond this year and let me get this photo.

A couple of weeks later, during a cold spell, the GBS settled on some dead branches to warm in the mid-morning sun and let me get within about 10-ft where I got this photo.

When spooked, it settled on another dead branch on the other side of where I was standing. I was able to edge even closer and got this photo.

Identification resources:
- Dragonflies of Georgia: Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans)
- BugGuide: Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans) [Male] [Female]
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