As I drove back yesterday from Georgia to Northern Virginia, an almost 800 mile drive (1287 km), I stopped at a rest area on I-95 in North Carolina. Noting that there was a small man-made pond, I decided to investigate for odes and spotted this damselfly. One of the experts in the Southeaster Odes Facebook Group helped to identify this beauty as a female Fragile Forktail damselfly (Ischnura posita).
It’s a whole lot cooler in Northern Virginia than it was in Georgia and North Carolina, so I suspect that I will have to wait a month or two for damselflies and dragonflies to emerge here. With this sneak preview, I can hardly wait.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
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You’ve captured such incredible detail. I can even see the wee “hairs” illuminated by the sun.
Thanks, Laura. During the winter it is rare that I have occasion to use my macro lens. The kind of tiny details that you noted are one of the reasons why I love macro photography so much.
I saw my first dragonflies and damselflies last week here in SE Texas. As warm as it’s been, I suspect they’ve been emerging for longer than that — and it’s true I’ve not been around the wetlands much of late. Still, their time is coming.
Are you involved with this group? It looks like wonderful fun, and a great way to learn about these creatures — all while serving a good purpose.
I am a user at Odonata Central, which should get me access to that group, but the link is not working for me at the moment. I am part of a couple of dragonfly groups on Facebook, and they are my go-to places for identification. You must be a bit warmer than we are. Here in Northern Virginia, it will probably be at least a month before we see some dragonflies. However, some plants have been fooled by the recent warm weather here, so there is a chance that I will see one earlier.