Dragonfly ID

[Dianne]

Hi All,

I'm new to Dragonflys, but find them fascinating and absolutely beautiful !

Is this a female Pondhawk?

[Richard Fray]

Hi Dianne

Nice shot! I'm far from an expert on American odonata, having only been in the US for just under a year, but I'd say that it was indeed a female pondhawk, and assuming you took the photo somewhere near your home in New York (ie: not out here in the Southwest) then it must be a female Eastern Pondhawk. The all-dark sides to segments 8 and 9 rule out Western anyway.

I've got a photo of a female Western Pondhawk on my website at http://richardfray.topcities.com/diary0309.htm You'll have to scroll right down to the bottom of the page. It's one of the few places where you get both Eastern and Western side by side, and I got a few photos of Eastern as well, but no females.

By the way, any idea of what the damselfly fly is that she's munching on?!

All the best
Richard Fray

[Geraldine]

Hi Dianne,
Great picture!
Hi Richard,
Do Dragonflies eat damselflies? I'd never thought about what they eat.

[Richard Fray]

Hi Geraldine,

Yep, the bigger or more aggressive dragonflies do eat damselflies, and here in the US (although I've yet to see one in my relatively short time here) there is a species called Dragonhunter which specializes in preying on other dragonflies, even some about the same size as it!

But basically, if you're a small flying insect (and I doubt you are!) then you're in trouble! Dragonflies are the raptors of the insect world, one of the things that makes them so exciting.

[Geraldine]

Hi Richard,
Wow! Didn't know that! I'm getting really hooked on dragonflies, through BF. Who'd have thought it?

[Dianne]

Richard & Geraldine....thanks for the comments!

Richard...like your site..great pics!!

Geraldine..me too, getting hooked on dragonflys

[Leslie]

Hi Dianne - That's a great shot! I've taken tons of dragonfly pics over the last several months, but I've yet to get one w/ a dragon preying on a damsel! I do believe that is a female eastern pondhawk.

Leslie

[Forcreeks]

Great to see all the enthusiasm for the world's Odonates. Right now I'm reading UK's Jill Silsby's "Dragonflies of the World." Just a marvelous book for interesting and readable natural history on the various sub-orders, and then broken down into families with examples from around the world. I've been in the field watching Odo's for about three seasons and rarely see an odonate with prey larger than a small fly, BUT in my very first season, I saw a darner (Aeshnadae) flying with a mated pair of damselflies, still in tandem grasp with the male in it's mouth! Wow was that something. I had a lot of joking from friends I'd tell, saying how he was still going about his business oblivious to being eaten, typical male! Of course they were only in tandem, nothing more at that time!

[dragonfly4jo]

If your getting hooked on dragons and damsels, and want to learn a few names, check out my friends website at....

http://www.njodes.com/

I've been dragon-hunting quite a few times with Jim, and he spends a lot of time researching these gorgeous bugs, hence the very cool and informative website! :cool:

Jo

[dragonfly4jo]

Hi Richard

The Dragonhunter was the dragon on my wishlist when I was last in the US, and I saw it a few times...it's absolutely incredible! I wouldn't like to be another bug with that thing about!!

Jo

[KCFoggin]

Yup, eastern pondhawk. That was the first green Ode I had ever come across and I fell in love with it.

[KCFoggin]

Morning Steve.
My daughter gave me that book for my birthday and it is a marvelous read.

[Forcreeks]

That's a really nice gift and not cheap. She really knows you're hooked on these then!

[KCFoggin]

Yes Steve, she knows. The funny part of it is that I asked for Stoke's guide and she didn't think it was enough of a gift so she got me Dragonflies of the World instead. I wound up going out and getting the Stokes guide myself :)

[sheryl chacon]

Joe Ann Edwards is this you? If your getting hooked on dragons and damsels, and want to learn a few names, check out my friends website at....

http://www.njodes.com/

I've been dragon-hunting quite a few times with Jim, and he spends a lot of time researching these gorgeous bugs, hence the very cool and informative website! :cool:

Jo