Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Hello There

This little lady, an Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis) really like a patch of grass where I was photographing some Anglefruit Milkweed (Matelea gonocarpa) flowers. If I moved close, she’d fly off a little way, circle around and then return to the same area. Finally I used my ‘patented’ method of holding the camera at arms length to get close up shots.

Here she is. She blends in well with her surroundings.

Here she is again. Up close, Isn’t she sweet. As long as you're not a fly.
Click on an image to view a larger image

Identification resources:
- Georgia Dragonfly Survey: Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis)
- BugGuide: Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis) [Male] [Female]

Related posts:
- Dragonfly: Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis)
at

2 comments:

  1. Joy WindowAugust 4, 2011 at 12:40 AM

    You've taken some great shots of dragonflies. How do you get them to stay still? Mine zoom all over the place, frustrating my attempts! Not that we have many now, being winter, but the days are warming up so I'm expecting to see more insect life soon-ish. Am looking out for our regular firelfy emergence.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JSKAugust 4, 2011 at 5:35 PM

    I wish I could say that I just talk to them nicely.
    Here there are basically two types: those that cruise and never seem to land - like the Two-striped Forceptail from a couple of days ago, and the others like this pondhawk that tend to return to the same or a nearby spot in a fairly small area.
    The former are very hard to photograph; the latter are easier if you determine their favorite spots. I've also found that holding the camera one-handed at arms length doesn't spook the dragonfly as getting my body close to them - even if I don't throw a shadow over them.
    Sounds like you have the former. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete