Tag Archives: Dragonfly

Dragonfly Trio, 1 of 3

September 6, 2021 Ellen Jennings Leave a comment

Who could resist three dragonflies lined up in a row?

These dragonflies, which I believe are all Four-spotted Pennants, were quite cooperative as I took this opportunity to experiment with different f-stops to see what ranges might be in focus.

These were all taken at 1/1000 sec with the Tamron 180mm prime macro lens.

I was about three feet (100cm) from the closest one, on the right in first image. Their perches were about 12 inches (30cm) apart left to right and a bit closer than that in their distance from each other front to back.

Bear Island Wildlife Management Area, SC
September 5, 2021

Insects

Common Whitetail on Ground

September 4, 2021 Ellen Jennings 2 Comments

This dragonfly, which I think is a Common Whitetail, was going back and forth between a patch of grass and a sidewalk, perching for 20 or 30 seconds in each place.

He might have been overstuffed with mosquitoes as there was no shortage of them after me.

ID corrections welcome.

I first thought it might be a Banded Pennant, the described variations on each species are confounding.

Hampton Plantation, McClellanville, SC
August 26, 2021

Insects

More Dragonfly On Pink

September 2, 2021 Ellen Jennings 3 Comments

A few more images from last month of patio visitors.

There was competition for these bamboo stakes for weeks.

The few dragonflies around my backyard now don’t seem to be interested.

Insects

Dragonfly Assortment From July

August 31, 2021 Ellen Jennings 2 Comments

Here we are staring at the door of September and I have dragonfly images left from early July. Time to move them on!

Fence pickets make great perches and are at a great height for photography.

On the other side of that fence a piece of rebar attracted a Roseate Skimmer.

A slope down into a pond was covered with little flowers and and grass seed heads for perches.

Middleton Place, Charleston, SC
July 7, 2021

Insects

Eyes on The Sky

August 28, 2021 Ellen Jennings 5 Comments

Insects

Dragonfly Eyes

August 26, 2021 Ellen Jennings 4 Comments

Dragonflies have amazing compound eyes.

Blue Dasher on Unopened Trumpet Vine Flower

One remarkable feature is how the eyes look to us, changing with just a flip of the head.

August 25, 2021

Insects

Do Dragonflies Have Chins?

August 24, 2021 Ellen Jennings 11 Comments

This dragonfly was determined to perch at the point of an unopened mandevilla bloom, but couldn’t seem to hold still.

He appeared to be scratching his chin, repeating this motion several times.

He did settle in, allowing me to maneuver to another view.

Insects

Needham’s Skimmer on Salvia

August 20, 2021 Ellen Jennings 4 Comments

I believe this is a Needham’s Skimmer, female, showing off on yet another interesting perch.

Needham's Skimmer on Salvia — Needham’s Skimmer on Salvia

This bed of Salvia was inside a box hedged garden, limiting my angle.

There was considerable wear and tear on the insect’s wings but as usual I saw no sign it inhibited her movement.

Middleton Place
July 7, 2021

Insects

Needham’s Skimmers

August 18, 2021 Ellen Jennings 4 Comments

A number of Needham’s Skimmers joined me on walk in early July, or maybe I joined them as they flitted ahead of me on an old rice field dike.

I like this image for the shadow on the leaf.

In all of these images the concentration of color at the front of the wings, which distinguishes the Needham’s Skimmer from some others, is obvious.

That helps more for ID than the amorphous “Needham’s abdomen averages a bit redder” when compared to the Golden Skimmer.

July 4, 2021

Insects

Four-spotted Pennant, On Nature’s Art

August 12, 2021 Ellen Jennings 4 Comments

Pennant dragonflies are known for perching at the tips of twigs and stems. This Four-spotted Pennant chose a very arty looking piece of vegetation to show off his spots.