Eastern Pondhawk Female Dragonfly - Erythemis simplicicollis - on Pine Needles
by Carol Senske
Title
Eastern Pondhawk Female Dragonfly - Erythemis simplicicollis - on Pine Needles
Artist
Carol Senske
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
There's a nature trail in Buxton, Outer Banks, North Carolina, that takes you through a forest and brackish pond area. Dragonflies find a comforable home here - food, sunshine, shelter.
These are relatively large dragonflies with the ladies having a lovely green coloration and the gents being blue with a green head. The general range of these dragonflies is the eastern 2/3rds of the USA, Bermuda and a few other islands, and southern Ontario, Canada.
These are often seen quietly waiting for an unsuspecting meal to happen by. They are not shy about grabbing almost anything, even other dragonflies, and the spines on their legs act as a trap to hold their prey.
Dragonflies do not come after people. If you hold one in your hand it may feel threatened and bite, but they are not aggressive toward people.
For a nice little write up you can visit:
http://www.nps.gov/miss/naturescience/pondhawk.htm
For a map of the range of these wonderful insects, see the link below:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/577/data
Uploaded
March 12th, 2011
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Comments (3)
Bette Devine
Fine shot. I saw a couple of dragonflies on a deck pot plant yesterday. They were rather small. Thinking of you, I went to fetch my camera but they were gone when I returned. Inspired by your shot, I shall continue to look for them! x
Carol Senske replied:
Thank you, Bette. There are small dragonflies, but those on your deck could also be damselflies. Damselflies have eyes that bulge out from the sides of their faces and like to hold their wings together over their back. All rules are made to be broken, of course. Dragonflies have more of a square head and will hold their wings flat, up, and sometimes even down. All of them are worthy of the chase:>)
AnnaJo Vahle
Wonderful capture, Carol. Interesting description. I didn't realize that they could bite! f
Carol Senske replied:
Thank you for such a nice comment, AnnaJo. I love dragonflies, so beautiful. Although they "can:" bite, they are not aggressive and I've NEVER been bitten. If someone grabbed them , they might bite out of fear.
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