There has been a recent explosion of dragonflies in my area. Yesterday was a hot, humid day and I encountered hundreds of dragonflies as I walked along the trails of one of my favorite wildlife park. They were almost all relatively common species, including Common Whitetails, Needham’s Skimmers, Eastern Pondhawks, and Great Blue Skimmers. These dragonflies thrive in a variety of habitats, are numerous, and are easy to see.
Some of the rarest dragonflies in our area, however, are quite muted in their appearance, like these male Sable Clubtail dragonflies (Stenogomphurus rogersi). Sable Clubtails are generally found only in very small numbers, have a short flight period, and require very specific habitats,—this species prefers small, clean forest streams. This past two weeks I have spent hours exploring a stream in Fairfax County in Virginia, the county in which I live, and spotted a grand total of two Sable Clubtails.
As you can see from the first photo, my most recent sighting, Sable Clubtails like to perch flat on leafy vegetation, just above the level of the stream. They are often in shadowy areas and are incredibly skittish, so it is tough to get a good shot of a Sable Clubtail.
The dragonfly in the second and third photo was initially spotted by a fellow dragonfly enthusiast a little over a week ago. I was upstream from him (and had not noticed that he was there) when he called out to me and informed me that he had spotted a Sable Clubtail. I hurried over in the direction of his voice and photographed the dragonfly in the middle photo. I was able to capture the markings of the Sable Clubtail by shooting almost directly downwards, but the sunlight produced harsh specular highlights.
As I crouched to get a better angle, I spooked the dragonfly. Fortunately it flew only a few feet away and perched higher on a leaf in a slightly shaded area, which let me capture the third shot before it flew away.
I don’t know if I will see another Sable Clubtail this season, but it was gratifying to be able to have two encounters with this uncommon species. Habitats are fragile and changeable, so I never know from year to year if one of these low-density species will reappear or not. At this location, I have been blessed to photograph a Sable Clubtail for three of the last four years. I’ll probably check it out at least another couple of times before I call it quits for this species for the season.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Those shiny wings!
Blue Rock Horses Frederick County, Virginia bluerockhorses.com
I love that second photo!
Thanks, Dan. It is a unusual kind of angle–the other two shots are much more common. 🙂
Magical creatures. Great captures Mike.
Congrats on the rare find! You must be very patient to spot them and your photos are excellent!
Thanks. I tend to be really patient and persistent, although knowledge helps too in understanding where and when to look for certain species.
Sounds similar to finding fungi but at least fungi stays still for me 😀
I think the process is similar for almost any kind of nature photography. Knowledge really helps.
I have learnt so many unexpected things through photography – and blogging, it feeds the mind!
Very nice Sable Clubtail dragonfly images Mike! Enjoyed seeing them! Have not seen very many dragonflies here in NJ yet but should be seeing more soon!
Nice series, Mike. I especially like the second photo… the different angle, the light…
Thanks, Chris. I never know what angles will work with viewers, so I try to include a variety whenever possible. It is kind of like your ground/sea level shots vice your drone shots. They serve complementary purposes and work well in tandem.
As always, very impressive work. Their intricate details are amazing and probably rarely seen by us neophytes. I’m sure as soon as the blast furnace of the south cools a bit Ellen will be back out at them too.
Thanks, Ted. I took them with the same Tamron 180mm macro that Ellen has too. We had a foretaste of summer yesterday. It got up to 99 yesterday, a new record high for the date, was humid, and the deer flies were merciless in bugging me. Needless to say I did not stay out as long as I normally like to do. Fortunately today’s high is only in the upper 70’s.My body is not ready for the summer’s heat.
I haven’t been out shooting for a few days now… heat and humidity is just brutal.