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We took a field trip to Charlie Elliott Wildlife Center yesterday. It was quite windy and dragonfly activity was low at most sites except at Whitetail Lake where male Eastern Pondhawks (Erythemis simplicicollis) were thick and jostling for real estate along the dam shore.

The shore along the dam at Whitetail Lake.

This male Eastern Pondhawk has caught a red and black beetle and is settling in to enjoy his meal.

A closer view. This and the following photograph were taken using a macro setting and holding the camera at arms length as I move slowly closer, focus and shoot.

And an even closer view. Nom.

It’s interesting that male Eastern Pondhawks in this area (Jasper County, GA) are uniformly gray rather than exhibiting the blue-green thorax and upper abdomen exhibited by males at home (Walton County, GA). The characteristics that differentiate the male Eastern Pondhawks from the Slaty Skimmers (Libellula incesta) which are still present in this area and look similar in bright sunlight, are the blue-green eyes, bright green ‘nose’, and clear wings with brown segments near the ends of the front side of the forewings.
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Identification resources:
- Bug Guide: Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis) [male] [female]
- Dragonflies of Georgia: Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis)