So I know next to nothing about dragonflies (among other things) but I’ve spent the summer learning about the dragonflies and damselflies in our area since the birds simply weren’t cooperating. I had no idea what dragonflies and damselflies were in our area or what should and shouldn’t be here. However, since I have a camera, I took a lot of photos and got two great books on dragonflies (Dragonflies and Damselflies of Georgia and the Southeast (Wormsloe Foundation Nature Books and Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East (Princeton Field Guides, 80) ) and muddled my way through.
In the process, apparently I found a couple of species that aren’t supposed to be in my area: Needham’s Skimmer (Libellula needhami) and the Furtive Forktail (Ischnura prognata). Who knew? Well, I guess anyone who knew anything about dragonflies probably would have known. The crazy thing is: if I had known they weren’t supposed to be here, I probably wouldn’t have identified them. I would have decided that Needham’s was actually the Golden-winged Skimmer (Libellula auripennis) and I don’t know what I would have thought about the Furtive Forktail. But since I had an open mind, I looked at all the traits and with the help of folks on iNaturalist, I was able to identify them.
The really interesting thing is that a North Carolina website on Odonate (dragonflies) at NC Odonate Website (ncparks.gov) noticed my observations on iNaturalist and I actually got “credit” for observing those two species in my area. (If you want to check it out, look at the page on Needham’s Skimmer). That’s why it so important for folks to get out there and explore the natural world. You don’t know what you might run across and if you take the time to document what you’re seeing (and even photograph it!) you can contribute to our knowledge of the wonders of nature.
Back to the skimmers: there is this really interesting pale area on the thorax of the Needham’s and the Golden-winged dragonflies (and on others as well) that can be shaped like a wolf’s head. The “nose” of the head on the Needham’s crosses over what is called the humeral suture and points towards the face. The pale area on the Golden-winged is neatly bounded by the humeral suture. Other skimmers have the pale wolf’s head as well and the shape of it can assist in identifying the species.
On the Golden-winged Skimmer above, the paler area on the thorax neatly follows the humeral suture, so that, along with the extensive orange-gold veins in the wings and the orange abdomen are pretty conclusive.
In the female Needham’s Skimmer shown above, the pale “nose” of the wolf’s head is clear, pointing directly at her eye. The color in her wings is only along the front edges of her wings and overall, she’s pretty much a “text book” representative of her species. The male, shown below was also a surprisingly perfect example, again, with the color in the wings on the front edges and the pale wolf’s nose pointing at his head and crossing over the humeral suture, just as it does in the female above. The male Needham’s has a dark, reddish-orange abdomen that tends to be darker than the Golden-winged Skimmer, but you can see how the two might be mixed up. That’s why that pale area on the thorax is so important. It can be difficult, however, to see if the pale area crosses the humeral suture, especially on older specimen.
I’m adding another picture of the male Needham’s Skimmer simply because he was a very beautiful specimen.
The Furtive Forktail damselfly was in a wooded area, resting near one of the runs (streams). The photo below is of a male, but there were both males and females in the area. A photo of the orange female follows the photo of the male.
The male is green with a blue tip on his abdomen (S9 is blue) while the female is orange.
Another beautiful damselfly is the Citrine Forktail and they are everywhere! But they are so tiny that they are easily overlooked as they slip around fields and even lawns. They are green and bright yellow and really are lovely.
These little forktails are only about an inch long and because they are green and yellow, it’s very easy to miss seeing them. But if you can catch a glimpse, they are lovely.
There are more damselflies and dragonflies out there, too, and even a few birds.
Most of our birds prefer to stay hidden this time of year, but I managed to find a couple of immature Common Yellowthroats in the scrub along the ditches. This one seemed particularly curious so I was able to get a fairly decent photo.
There are always new critters to learn about–it’s just a matter of getting out there and doing it!
