Many people associate the color red with autumn because of the brilliant foliage that the season brings forth in places like New England. For me, though, red is an autumn color because of the bright red dragonflies that remain active in October and November (and sometimes even later in the year).
Yes, I continue to chase dragonflies as we move deeper and deeper into autumn. I spotted this handsome male Autumn Meadowhawk dragonfly(Sympetrum vicinum) last Wednesday at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge in nearby Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Many of the Autumn Meadowhawks that I saw earlier this fall were females, which have a much more subdued coloration. There is nothing subdued about this male, which made it pretty easy to spot him, especially when he perched on a small stump at knee-level. You do have to pay attention to find them, however, because Autumn Meadowhawks are only about 1.3 inches (33 mm) in length.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
You do know that you’re turning me into a dragonfly fan. I hope you know anyway.
I agree with Michael. I have never been so fascinated with dragonflies before your blog. 🙂 This red one is great, always loved the color red!
I am envious of your chases Mike, such beauty
Very striking! That red makes me think of Venice in Italy at Christmas (where we saw a lot of bright red lingerie displayed in shop windows in the lead-up to Christmas), and also of the Cardinals in their bright red robes.. not to mention the last Pope’s bright red shoes!