Male Blue Dasher dragonflies (Pachydiplax longipennis) assume this handstand-like position, called the obelisk posture, when they feel threatened or want to minimize exposure to the sun. I was leaning a little closer than normal to this dragonfly, because I had a 100mm lens attached to the camera and not a longer zoom lens, so maybe that caused him to be a little alarmed. As the weather warms up and more dragonflies appear, I am sure that I will be getting a lot more shots of Blue Dashers, which were my favorite dragonflies to photograph last summer.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Mike Powell 
Beautiful eyes on this dragonfly!
Thanks, Sue. Almost a year ago, you were the one that first introduced me to the term “obelisk pose” in a response to one of my very first blog postings.
I’ve not heard that term before, but I’ve often seen them in this pose. Thanks for the enlightenment!