Sometimes I can identify a dragonfly by the way that it perches. Some dragonflies like to perch high on the tip of vegetation and some perch low to the ground or even on the ground itself. Some will hang vertically or perch horizontally or at an angle somewhere in between.
On the rare occasions in the past when I have seen a Common Green Darner (Anax junius) perch (usually I see them in the air), it has usually been in vegetation relatively low to the ground. I was therefore surprised to see one spreadeagled on the side of a tree on Monday at Patuxent Research Refuge in Laurel, Maryland. Of course, the bright green color and the bull’s-eye pattern on the face made it easy to identify this dragonfly, despite her unconventional perching pattern.
I have learned from experience that the wildlife subjects that I love to photograph often do not look or act the way in the ways described in books. They are may also be found in different habitats or at different times than the range maps indicate. That is what makes this type of photography so challenging and so rewarding and it means I have to be constantly alert and vigilant when out in the field.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Funny, how so many plants and animals seem not to have read the books describing what they’re ‘supposed’ to do!
or they are all simply rebels… It’s kind of like the old rules about what people of a certain gender or age were supposed to do. It was great on Easter Sunday to see how many men were wearing pink, a color that was reserved for girls when I was growing up.
It might be time to write your own book, Mike.
I like dragonflies, Dan, but I see myself primarily as a photographer. There are some folks that can get as geeky as the most fanatical birders–I am not there yet, and don’t aspire to that level of scientific expertise.
Dragonflies for Dummys ??? (like me)
Green and Gold with tiny bits of blue, an amazingly beautiful creature!
The pattern and texture of the bark make a great background and renders it almost invisible.
I considered cropping in closer, but I like showing that much bark, specifically because of the reason you cited. I know that I am looking for certain shapes when searching for dragonflies and the bark breaks up the shapes and make the dragonflies hard to detect. If it had not been for the bright green color, I am not sure I would have seen it.
[…] Research Refuge in Laurel, Maryland to search for dragonflies. I have already posted photos of a Common Green Darner and a Swamp Darner, both of which are large and colorful and relatively easy to […]