Smiling at me

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Smiling at me

July 7, 2025 by Mike Powell

I have spent a lot more time indoors this past month than I normally, as a result of our unusually warm and stormy weather. On Saturday I finally made it out to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, my favorite place to explore with my camera, and was greeted by an abundance of dragonflies.

Many of the dragonflies I encountered were Needham’s Skimmers that were often perched at the tops of vegetation that seems to have grown a lot recently. A lot of other flies were common too and they pestered me incessantly by buzzing around my ears, but fortunately they did not appear to be interested in biting me.

I was delighted that many dragonflies seemed be smiling at me, like this cool-looking Needhams’s Skimmer (Libellula needhami). I also really like that I able to capture the beauty of the beautiful two-toned, speckled eyes.

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife | Tagged Canon 7D, Libellula needhami, Needham's Skimmer, Needham's Skimmer dragonfly, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 18-400mm, Woodbridge VA | 7 Comments

7 Responses

on July 7, 2025 at 1:43 pm | Reply Jet Eliot

Oh yes, Mike, you are definitely getting a pearly smile pose for the camera. Great photo.
- on July 7, 2025 at 6:44 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks, Jet. Perhaps it’s just my imagination or perhaps not. It’s just more fun to have an active imagination!
on July 7, 2025 at 9:49 pm | Reply Pepper

Fantastic.
- on July 8, 2025 at 5:03 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks.
on July 9, 2025 at 3:25 am | Reply kewtiebird

Aw. Very sweet shot.
- on July 9, 2025 at 7:45 am | Reply Mike Powell
  
  Thanks. Of course, it’s anatomically probably impossible for a dragonfly to smile, but my imagination is not based on reality–fantasy is more fun.
on July 11, 2025 at 4:58 am | Reply Lakshmi Bhat

Yes, they appear to be smiling. 😊