I was surprised and delighted to spot this Black-shouldered Spinyleg dragonfly (Dromogomphus spinosus) last week as I was exploring a mucky area in a local park. It was the kind of habitat where I hoped to spot Gray Petaltails and I was successful in doing so, as documented in my blog posting a few days ago called Gray Petaltail dragonfly in May.
However, I did not expect to find Black-shouldered Spinylegs, which in the past I have found most often near open streams. In fact, I must confess that I had no idea what kind of dragonfly it was when it flew by and landed on some large skunk cabbage leaves. Fortunately, I reacted quickly and manage to capture a few shots before the dragonfly flew away.
When I reviewed my photos later on my computer, I was struck by the length of the dragonfly’s back legs. If you click on the image to zoom in, you can’t help but notice the sharp spines that look to be as large and pointed as the thorns in the vegetation that frequently tear at my pantlegs. Those large leg spines help the Black-shouldered Spinyleg to capture and to hold on to prey (and help to explain the origin of the name of the species).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Hello! For some unknown reason, at least to myself, I have not been able to leave comments. For some reason, also unknown to myself, I managed to resolve the problem. Persistence, on my part, may have been the solution. Be that as may be, I love this photo…Spinylegs indeed! Also, as always, I enjoyed your commentary which is informative and entertaining. I will share these words that were spoken during the music titled “A Voice” playing during ice skater, Ilia Malinin’s, program (which was won after his earlier failure at the Olympics). Thank-you, Mr. Mike!! P.S. I already left a comment on the Unicorn Clubtail post which was where the difficulty first arose. The posted comment was intended only as a test run but proved to be a win for me!
“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing. The lost is in the unknown. Embrace the storm. You are something. But not nothing. Past is not a chain but a thread. Pull it and it may lead you home. Begin where light no longer reaches. Where no path has yet been made.”