dragonflies
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Sympetrum
Insects are becoming fewer and far between now that autumn is upon us. One of the last dragonfly species to be seen are the Sympetrum Meadowhawks, red-bodied and small.There were a few active at midday on Friday at the NYBG.
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Unsaddled
The remains of a Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata), narrowly missed on the sidewalk.
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Autumn Meadowhawk
An immature or teneral male Sympetrum vicinum in Green-Wood. When mature, this small dragonfly will be a beautiful shade of red, and a representative of one of the few dragonfly species to be seen locally into October. The yellow-legs will stay this color: an alternate common name is Yellow-legged Meadowhawk. Having recently emerged from its…
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Painted Skimmer
Libellula semifasciata.
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Last Dragonfly
I took this picture through a window and at some distance. This was actually a sculptural element on the wall of a florist’s. But the two-foot wingspan reminded me of the ancient dragonflies. The extinct Meganeura genus, preserved in some pretty spectacular fossils, had wingspans up to 25″ (65 cm) around 300 million years ago.
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Flying
Insect-summer is over. But last week I was in Prospect Park and saw masses of dragonflies over the Butterfly Meadow, in a patch of the Nethermead, and then in two clusters along the Long Meadow. They all seemed to be Common Green Darners, the large migrating species. And they were hunting on the wing. Gnats,…
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Skimmer Fore and Aft
Female Twelve-spotted Skimmers (Libellula pulchella) seen on Staten Island and Brooklyn.
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Sympetrum Meadowhawks
The red meadowhawk dragonflies are difficult to identify in the field, since several members of the genus Sympetrum look rather similar.But I figured these out because of the legs. These are Autumn Meadowhawks (Sympetrum vicinum), in some sources called Yellow-legged; other meadowhawks have black legs. They’re small: 1.3″ long. Their colors, especially the bright males,…
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Future Odes
Eastern Amberwings (Perithemis tenera) in the reproductive wheel: the male holds the female by the back of the head; the female curves her abdomen up and forwards his genitalia, located (counterintuitively?) at the base of his abdomen. A female Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) dipping her abdomen down to lay fertilized eggs in a bit of…