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Archive for the ‘Insects’ Category

Almost hidden

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on August 20, 2023| 1 Comment »

Female Eastern Pondhawk dragonflies (Erythemis simplicicollis) are quite easy to spot when they are out in the open—they are bright emerald green in color and have distinctive black stripes on their abdomens. When they land in a grassy area, however, they virtually disappear from sight, thanks to their almost perfect camouflage.

During a recent visit to Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, I spotted this Eastern Pondhawk while it was flying and watch it land on this fallen branch. If I had not seen the dragonfly land and it had remained still on its perch, I doubt that I would have detected its presence.

Eastern Pondhawk

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Slaty Skimmers

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on August 16, 2023| 2 Comments »

One of the most common dragonflies that I see at this time of the year is the Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta). Male Slaty Skimmers have dark bodies and dark eyes and are pretty easy to identify. Slaty Skimmers tend to perch on bare stalks and one of my challenges in photographing them is to try to frame my shots so that the background is interesting.

Here are three images in which I tried to use a bit of my creativity in the way that I composed the shots by including some of the vegetation, as in the first and second shots, or by focusing on lines and angles, as in the final photo.

I am making another trip this week to Massachusetts and Maine to deal with some family issues, so this may be my last blog post of the week. I am planning to return on Saturday, so perhaps there will be a new posting on Sunday morning.

Slaty Skimmer

Slaty Skimmer

Slaty Skimmer

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Balancing act

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on August 15, 2023| 2 Comments »

I was intrigued by the varying wing positions of this Banded Pennant dragonfly (Celithemis fasciata) that I spotted last week at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. There was a bit of a breeze and this little dragonfly was doing its best to hold on to the vegetation by adjusting its wings.

Although each wing can function independently from the others, it appeared that the dragonfly mostly moved them in pairs. I was particularly struck in the first photo by the way that the front wings of the Banded Pennant were tilted forward, while its back wings were held flat horizontally.

Banded Pennant

Banded Pennant

Banded Pennant

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Swift Setwing in August

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on August 14, 2023| 3 Comments »

I was happy to see that at least a few Swift Setwing dragonflies (Dythemis velox) were still around this past Friday at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. We are gradually moving to a time of the summer when some dragonfly species decrease in numbers or disappear. Fortunately, a few fall species will appear soon to take their places.

Swift Setwing

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Stream damselflies

Posted in damselfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on August 13, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Most of the damselflies that I photograph are found at ponds. However, there are other damselflies that are found primarily at streams and creeks. I spotted two such species this past Tuesday when I was exploring a creek in Prince William County, Virginia.

The damselfly in the first photo is a Powdered Dancer (Argia moesta) that I spotted on a rocky ledge of the creek. Male Powdered Dancers are the only mostly white damselflies that I have seen and they get increasingly white as they mature. I love the way the angle of the shot makes it look like the damselfly was perched on the side of a massive mountain that it was attempting to climb.

The damselfly in the second photo is a Dusky Dancer (Argia translata). This damselfly may have the most intense blue eyes that I have ever seen on an insect. It was perched on a rocky ledge at the edge of a creek. I would have liked to get a closer shot, but the bank of the creek was high and steep and the ledge was inaccessible to me (unless I was willing to get really wet, which I did not want to do).

According to Wikipedia, the damselflies in the genus Argia, are commonly known as “dancers” because of the distinctive jerky form of flight they use which contrasts with the straightforward direct flight of bluets, forktails, and other pond damselflies.

Powdered Dancer

Dusky Dancer

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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A few more dragonflies in flight

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on August 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Yesterday I had the chance to test my skill and my patience as I tried to capture images of dragonflies in flight at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. I believe they are a Royal River Cruiser (Macromia taeniolata), a Prince Baskettail (Epitheca cynosura), and a Russet-tipped Clubtail (Stylurus plagiatus), members of three different families of dragonflies.

The Royal River Cruiser is the most uncommon of these three species—I have only seen one a few times and this is the first time that I have gotten a decent shot of one. Cruisers are large dragonflies with large eyes and long legs that generally fly up and down streams or rivers or along lake shores. I did not expect to see one at the small pond at this refuge, but there is an adjacent wetland and a small stream, so maybe the dragonfly made a detour in its patrol over those areas. This dragonfly followed the shore of the pond and flew fast in a single direction.

The Prince Baskettail is the most common of the three dragonflies and I have featured in-flight shots of this species multiple times. The Prince Baskettail appears to have a portion of the shoreline as its territory and it flies back and forth, giving me multiple opportunities to get a shot. This dragonfly has amazing stamina and rarely seems to rest—in ten years of observing dragonflies, I have seen a perched Prince Baskettail only a couple of times.

The Russet-tipped Clubtail is a dragonfly that appears in the late summer and I usually spot one when it is hanging from the vegetation. This one was the first sighting for me of the species this season. Although the dragonfly never came close to the shore, the distinctive color of its “tail” made it easy for me to identify it, even when it was flying.

In case any of you are curious, I captured all of these images with my Canon 7D DSLR and my Tamron 18-400mm zoom lens. Sometimes I focus manually when trying to photographing dragonflies in flight, but I believe I used my camera’s autofocus for these shots with a group of nine focus points in the center selected.

Royal River Cruiser

Prince Baskettail

Russet-tipped Clubtail

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Halloween Pennant in August

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on August 11, 2023| 3 Comments »

On Tuesday I was thrilled to spot the distinctive color and patterns of a Halloween Pennant (Celithemis eponina) dragonfly as I was exploring a field adjacent to a creek in Prince William County, Virginia. The Halloween Pennant’s wings are orange in color with dark brown bands, the Halloween inspiration for its common name.

Like other “pennant” dragonflies, Halloween Pennants like to perch at the tips of plants, as you can see in these images, which causes them to wave like pennants in even the slightest breezes. I love the way the photos how the dragonfly uses its three sets of legs to grasp the vegetation, ensuring that it can hold on even when the wind is blowing hard.

Halloween Pennant

Halloween Pennant

Halloween Pennant

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Fawn Darner dragonfly

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on August 9, 2023| 4 Comments »

I spotted this cool-looking dragonfly yesterday when it flew to a hanging perch in some shaded vegetation along a creek in Prince William County. I was walking along a trail parallel to the creek and was primarily looking towards the water. Out of the corner of my eye, I detected some movement and spotted where the dragonfly had landed.

A couple of things immediately stood out to me. The dragonfly was hanging vertically, which meant that it was probably not one of the more common skimmers that I am used to seeing at this time of the year. I noted too that the dragonfly was long and skinny and, realizing that my camera was going to have trouble focusing on the dragonfly, I switched to manual focusing. I was able to snap off only a couple of shots before the dragonfly flew away and despite my efforts to relocate it, I was not able to find the dragonfly again.

When I looked on the back of my camera at the images that I had captured, I was not able to identify the dragonfly. When I returned home, I looked through my dragonfly guides and determined that it was a Fawn Darner dragonfly (Boyeria vinosa), a new species for me. Some experts in a Facebook dragonfly group confirmed my identification.

According to the Dragonflies of Northern Virginia website, “Unlike most other darners, and in fact most dragonflies, Fawns shun open, sunny areas. They spend the day hiding in dense, shady underbrush, hanging from the branches of shrubs and young trees. Around 4PM they start venturing out to patrol their shady, forest streams, peaking from about 6PM-8PM.” I encountered the Fawn Darner around midday, so I may have been disturbing its resting period.

Wildlife and nature photographers use many different approaches. Some of them go out to researched locations with a goal of seeing specific species—they are very targeted in their tactics. Others, like me, are opportunistic photographers who wander about, ready to react to whatever they encounter. Although I do love to spot species that are new to me, as was the case with this Fawn Darner, such encounters tend to be almost serendipitous—I tend to stumble upon new species.

Fawn Darner

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Male Needham’s Skimmer dragonfly

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on August 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Last Saturday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I was delighted to spot this male Needham’s Skimmer (Libellula needhami), one of the most brightly colored dragonflies in our area. In addition to its beautiful reddish-orange color, this dragonfly has stunning gold accents on the front edges of each of its wings.

Needham's Skimmer

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Skipper and Milkweed

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on August 7, 2023| 1 Comment »

The milkweed flowers were just beginning to open, but this Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus) was already attracted to it. I spotted this butterfly, one of the only skipper butterflies that I can reliably identify, on Saturday during a short visit to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Usually I avoid visiting locations like this on the weekend, because they tend to be too crowded for my taste—I am a little selfish when it comes to sharing my wildlife experience with others and generally prefer a solitary pursuit.

Some other local photographers have already spotted some warblers, so I had my long 150-600mm lens on my camera when I encountered this butterfly. I am pretty happy with the amount of detail that I was able to capture with the lens fully extended—this lens has a reputation of being quite soft at the long end, but that has not generally been my experience.

Silver-spotted Skipper

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Male Widow Skimmer dragonfly

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on August 6, 2023| 3 Comments »

Here’s a shot of a handsome male Widow Skimmer dragonfly (Libellula luctuosa) that I spotted this past Monday at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. The Widow Skimmer is one of only a few dragonfly species that I have encountered that has both white and brown markings on its wings. (the male Twelve-spotted Skimmer dragonfly is the only other one that immediately comes to mind and you can see what one looks like in my 31 May 2021 posting entitled Twelve-spotted Skimmer.

Backgrounds are always tricky when photographing insects perched in highly vegetated areas. I think the stalks of vegetation are blurred enough in the first image that they do not draw attention away from the main subject. I think, in fact, the the green and tan lines add some visual interest to the image that would be lacking if the entire background were a solid color. The background in the second image is a bit busier, but you get a much better view of the dragonfly’s wing patterns—wildlife photography is often a matter of compromise in which “perfection” is often unachievable.

Widow Skimmer

Widow Skimmer

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Prince Baskettails in flight

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on August 3, 2023| 6 Comments »

On Monday I spent several hours at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, focusing my attention primarily on trying to capture shots of Prince Baskettail dragonflies (Epitheca cynosura) in flight. There appeared to be several of them patrolling over the waters of the small pond and I managed to find some good vantage points that gave me unobstructed views of them as they passed by.

One of the locations where I spotted a Prince Baskettail included some lily pads and I decided to try to include them in the shots to give a sense of the environment. The downside of this approach, though, was that it made it even harder to keep my camera’s focus on the dragonfly—the camera kept trying to focus on the background. I was persistent, however, and managed to get a few good shots, as you can see in the first three images below.

I took the final image at a different spot where there were no lily pads. This shot is undoubtedly the sharpest one of today’s photos. Although you can’t see much of the environment in the image, the ripples in the water do add some visual interest.

I couldn’t help but notice that the dragonfly in the final photo had its legs in a lower position than normally—generally a Prince Baskettail flies with its legs held tightly against its thorax to present the most aerodynamic profile. I know that some dragonfly species catch prey on the fly with their legs extended like a basket and wonder if that was what this dragonfly was attempting to do.

Prince Baskettail

Prince Baskettail

Prince Baskettail

Prince Baskettail

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Female Eastern Amberwing dragonfly

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on August 2, 2023| 1 Comment »

Eastern Amberwing (Perithemis tenera) dragonflies are the smallest dragonflies in my area at less than an inch (25 mm) in length, but are quite common. I often spot the distinctive amber wings of the males as they fly low over the waters of many ponds. Females of this species, however, do not have amber wings—they have brown patches on their wings—and I rarely see them.

According to the Dragonflies of Northern Virginia website, female Eastern Amberwings are often found far from water, in meadows among summer wildflowers. “They’re probably hunting even smaller visitors to these summer blooms like midges, flower flies and tiny bees. They also share their colorful perches with hornets and other wasps. Perhaps, this is how their mimicry behavior evolved, and may explain why females appear to practice it more than males.”

On Monday I was thrilled to spot this female while I was exploring a pond at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. I am not sure if she had ventured down to the pond to mate, but whatever the case I was happy to capture some shots of her as she buzzed about the vegetation surrounding the pond. I love her two-toned eyes and the beautiful markings on her body.

Eastern Amberwing

Eastern Amberwing

Eastern Amberwing

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Swift Setwing dragonflies

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on July 25, 2023| 3 Comments »

I was excited to spot several Swift Setwing dragonflies (Dythemis velox) last Saturday along the edges of the pond at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. This species gets its name from the way that the way the Swift Setwings perch with their wings forward and abdomens up, like the “ready, set, go” position of a runner at a track meet.

The Swift Setwing is primarily a southern species that may never before have been spotted in Fairfax County, Virginia, the county where I live, until June 2016, when I spotted one at the same wetland refuge. (See my 25 June 2016 blog posting for details on my first sighting of the species.) Every year since then, I have excitedly looked forward to seeing these little dragonflies—it is pretty clear by now that there is an established breeding population at this pond. This is the only location where I have seen Swift Setwings, though I heard from a friend that they may have also been found at another local spot.

I am driving up to Massachusetts and Maine on Tuesday to handle some family issues and suspect that I will not be posting a blog until my return late on Saturday. After then I hope to return to my normal schedule of doing a blog posting almost every day.

Swift Setwing

Swift Setwing

Swift Setwing

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Unusual Amberwing Perches

Posted in Art, Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on July 24, 2023| 5 Comments »

During the summer, most of my dragonfly photos tend to be variations of the stereotypical “dragonfly on a stick.” I am always on the lookout, though, for more interesting or photogenic perching places and behaviors.

The first shot shows a male Eastern Amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera) perched on the end of a piece of rebar that sticks out of the water near a small fishing dock at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. Generally I try to avoid having manmade objects in my nature photos, but in this case I really like the juxtaposition of the natural and manmade elements in this shot. The warm tones of the amber wings contrast nicely with the cooler rust color of the rebar and the lines on the rebar are mirrored by those on the dragonfly’s body. Almost every year I return to this spot to capture a similar image, though each encounter is unique in its own way.

The second image shows another male Eastern Amberwing perched on a large rock jutting out from the water. I couldn’t get close to the dragonfly so I took the opposite approach and zoomed out to capture the dragonfly’s reflection (as well as the amber shadow it was casting on the rock). I really like the contrast between the diminutive size of the dragonfly and the large jagged rock—it seems almost like a visual metaphor for life’s challenges.

These two shots are examples of how I try, when possible, to visualize a shot before I take it. Frequently, though, I am forced to react instantaneously to a given situation, with a primary goal of keeping my subject within the frame and hopefully in focus. It’s a weird mental juggling act to simultaneously attempt to think creatively, instinctively, instinctively, and analytically—that’s wildlife photography in a nutshell.

Eastern Amberwing

Eastern Amberwing

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Great Spangled Fritillary

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on July 23, 2023| 3 Comments »

It seems like large butterflies have been more scarce than normal this summer. I was therefore thrilled to spot this Great Spangled Fritillary butterfly (Speyeria cybele) yesterday during a brief visit to Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. Most of the time the butterfly had its head buried in the flower, but for a brief moment the butterfly raised its head, spread its wings, and let me capture this pretty little portrait image.

Great Spangled Fritillary

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Banded Pennants in July

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on July 22, 2023| 3 Comments »

There is only one local location where I have found Banded Pennant dragonflies (Celithemis fasciata) in the past and in some years I have not seen a single one there. I was hopeful that I would see some on Thursday when I returned to Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge and my hopes were rewarded. Not only did I spot several Banded Pennants, but they were cooperative in choosing some photogenic perching locations for me.

Like other pennant dragonflies, Banded Pennants like to perch on the very tips of vegetation, which causes them to flap around a bit in the slightest breeze, like a pennant. I love the patterned wings of Banded Pennants, which cause them to stand out from several other small blue dragonflies that I saw that day. As you can see from the photos, the Banded Pennants mostly perched on plants overhanging the water or on vegetation growing out of the water.

At the last minute I decided to add the final photo, despite the fact that the dragonfly occupies only a small part of the frame. I really like the reflections of the plants in the water and did not want to zoom in and lose them. I also like the way that the image shows a Banded Pennant zooming low over the water in between the plants. If you look closely you can see the way that the dragonfly has tucked in its legs in order to be a bit more aerodynamic when flying.

Banded Pennant

Banded Pennant

Banded Pennant

Banded Pennant

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Dragonflies in flight

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 21, 2023| 15 Comments »

Yesterday I visited Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge and spent a lot of my time there trying to get shots of dragonflies in flight. The dragonflies were not very cooperative and kept their distance most of the time, but eventually I managed to get a few decent shots. What was especially cool was that I captured images of dragonflies from three different families—Skimmer, Darner, and Emerald.

The first photo shows a Banded Pennant (Celithemis fasciata), a Skimmer, as he was flying toward me. Banded Pennants are pretty small at about 1.3 inches (33 mm) in length, so I was pretty thrilled to capture this shot as he was flying toward me. This was actually the first time that I had seen a Banded Skimmer this season.

The second photo shows a Cyrano Darner (Nasiaeschna pentacantha). Despite the fact that I took the shot from a long distance away, you can still see the prominent “nose” that is supposedly reminiscent of the long nose of literary character Cyrano de Bergerac.

The last two photos show Prince Baskettails (Epitheca cynosura) that are members of the Emerald family. Prince Baskettails, which are about 2.9 inches (74 mm) are quite easy to identify, because they are the only large dragonfly in our area with patterned wings. I had more opportunities with this species that with the others, because several Prince Baskettails were flying repetitive patrols only various parts of the pond and passed by me multiple times. Although it is a little easier to focus on a dragonfly in flight when the background is clear, I think it is even cooler when I manage to include reflections in the water in a photo, as was the case with the reflections of the branches in the final photo.

Banded Pennant

Cyrano Darner

Prince Baskettail

Prince Baskettail

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Water lily and bees

Posted in Bees, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, Water Lilies, tagged , , , , , , , , , on July 20, 2023| 2 Comments »

There must have been something really special about this pretty pink water lily at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens. A honey bee was attracted to it and plunged headfirst into the center of the flower after perching momentarily on a petal. A bumble bee decided to join in the action and for a brief period worked side-by-side with its smaller cousin gathering pollen and nectar.

As I was looking at the photos on my computer, I couldn’t help but notice the cluster of tiny insects on the stem of the water lily. What were they? I posed the question in a Facebook forum and it turns out that they are probably Common Waterlily Planthoppers (Megamelus davisi).  I took photos of several other nearby water lilies, but this was the only one in which I saw the planthoppers. There must have been something really special about this pink water lily that caused it to attract so many insects.

water lily

water lily

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Another Monarch butterfly

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on July 15, 2023| 2 Comments »

Recently I featured some shots of a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) feeding on some milkweed. I feared that it might be the only Monarch that I would see this year, because there have been some years in the recent past when I have not spotted a single Monarch butterfly.

I was absolutely delighted this past Wednesday when I spotted another Monarch. I was walking along one of the trails at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge when my eyes were attracted by a flash of bright orange. I assumed incorrectly that it was “only” a Viceroy, but when I zoomed in, I could see that it was a Monarch.

I was using my long 150-600mm lens with a monopod, so I had to scramble a bit to get a good shooting angle. I was thrilled with the shot that I captured of the Monarch in action with its proboscis extended. I am not sure what kind of flower this is, but I really like the way that it was drooping a little as the butterfly perched lightly on it, helping to create a nice triangular composition.

Monarch butterfly

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Widow Skimmer dragonfly (male)

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on July 12, 2023| 4 Comments »

I love the distinctive wing markings on male Widow Skimmer dragonflies, one of only a few dragonfly species that I have encountered with both light and dark patches on their wings. I spotted this handsome male Widow Skimmer last week during a brief visit to Occoquan Regional Park in Lorton, Virginia.

One of the cool things about this dragonfly is that it looks almost like a butterfly when it is flying. With most dragonflies, the transparent wings seem to almost disappear when they are flying, but with the male Widow Skimmer, the wings are much more visible when the dragonfly is in motion.

Widow Skimmer

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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First Monarch Butterfly of 2023

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 10, 2023| 7 Comments »

I was excited to spot my first Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) of the season last Friday at Occoquan Regional Park in Lorton, Virginia. The milkweed was barely in bloom, but the Monarch nonetheless seemed to be really enjoying it.

I love the beauty of the Monarch, of course, but I am also very conscious of the fact that this species is considered to be endangered, threatened by the loss of habitat and by climate change. Some years I have not seen any Monarchs at all, so each sighting is special to me, reassuring me that Monarchs are continuing to survive.

As you can see, I attempted to get shots of the Monarch, the only one that I saw that day, from varying distances. When I first spotted the Monarch, I took several long distance shots like the third one below that show some of the habitat. Then I slowly moved forward, attempting to use the milkweed in my compositions.

It was a bit of a challenge to get good shots, because the butterfly was in almost constant motion, moving all around the little clumps of milkweed and changing its wing and body positions. I had to work quickly too, fully aware that the butterfly could fly off at any moment.

Monarch butterfly

Monarch butterfly

Monarch butterfly

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Common Wood Nymph butterfly

Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on July 9, 2023| 1 Comment »

I was delighted to spot this Common Wood Nymph butterfly (Cercyonis pegala) this past Wednesday at the edge of the hike-bike trail on the back side of Huntley Meadows Park, a county-run marshland park in Alexandria, Virginia. I love the distinctive yellow patch on its wing and its really cool eyes with vertical stripes. Common Wood Nymphs usually like to hang around near the edges of the woods rather than in the fields that many butterflies seem to prefer.

Generally I like to get the plane of the sensor of my camera sensor as close to parallel as possible with my subject, so that the entire subject is in focus. In this case, though, a large mass of thorny vines kept me from being able to get my desired shooting angle and consequently the focus on the left-hand side of the subject is a little soft. That being said, I am nonetheless pretty happy with this shot of a cool-looking butterfly that I don’t see very often.

Common Wood Nymph

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Common Sanddragon dragonfly

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on July 8, 2023| 3 Comments »

I was thrilled on Wednesday to photograph my first Common Sanddragon dragonfly (Progomphus obscurus) of the year as he was enjoying a sandy beach near Wickford Park in Alexandria, Virginia. Unlike most dragonflies that prefer to perch on vegetation, Common Sanddragons are usually found perched flat on the sunny, sandy sections of shallow creeks.

According to the Dragonflies of Northern Virginia website, “Despite its name, this species is rare in Northern VA. In other parts of the country, where clean, sunny, shallow creeks with plenty of sandy/gravely banks are common, so too are Common Sanddragons. Our urban waterways are too influenced by stormwater, flowing fast and unchecked off impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots, roofs, etc.). This creates deeply incised, eroded banks and streambeds, with excess silt, unstable flows.”

This species is special to me because I was the first person to document its presence at Huntley Meadows Park, a county-run marshland park where I used to do a lot of my photography before it became overcrowded with photographers. Check out my June 2014 blog posting New dragonfly species in the park for the details of how I stumbled upon this “new” species.

Common Sanddragons are also special to me because in June 2016 I was lucky enough to observe and document the thirty minute metamorphosis of a water-dwelling nymph into a Common Sanddragon dragonfly. I had been collecting some discarded exoskeletons of already emerged dragonflies on a sandy bank of a stream when suddenly I felt one moving in my hand. I quickly placed it on the sand and was able to photograph the dragonfly as it was emerging. It was a remarkable encounter and I encourage you to check out my blog posting Metamorphosis of a dragonfly.

Nothing quite that exciting happened during my most recent encounter. I was able to capture some images of the dragonfly on various parts of the “beach” where I initially spotted him. He was pretty skittish and flew away multiple times, but kept returning to the same general are of the creek, sometimes choosing the sandy areas and sometimes opting for the more rocky spots. I particularly like the first photo that has a mixture of rocks and sand and has some green algae that matches the stunning eyes of this Common Sanddragon.

 

Common Sanddragon

Common Sanddragon

Common Sanddragon

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Butterfly and butterfly weed

Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, Winter, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 7, 2023| 8 Comments »

It is always a joy to see butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), a bright orange species of milkweed that is full of nectar and attracts lots of butterflies. On Monday I spotted what I believe is a Pearl Crescent butterfly (Phyciodes tharos) feeding on some butterfly weed at Huntley Meadows Park in Alexandria, Virginia. I spotted some regular milkweed earlier in the day and was hoping to see my first Monarch butterfly of the season, but, alas, I came up empty-handed this time.

I love bright colors and some of you may recall that I drive an Ignition Orange KIA Soul. I was delighted to be able to capture some of the beautiful details and color of the butterfly weed and also some details of the butterfly, including its striking eyes and extended proboscis.

Pearl Crescent

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Prince Baskettail in flight

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on July 6, 2023| 2 Comments »

On Monday I was thrilled to spot this Prince Baskettail dragonfly (Epitheca cynosura) flying patrols over the small pond at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. Previously I had spotted Common Baskettails doing the same thing at this location—see my recent posting Common Baskettails in flight—but they seem to have been supplanted by the Prince Baskettails. How do you tell them apart? Although they are both part of the Emerald family, only Prince Baskettails have patterned wings, as you can see in these photos.

I really like the description of this species on the Dragonflies of Northern Virginia website:

“This sleek, elegant dragonfly could in fact be called King Baskettail, as it is the largest member of the Emerald family. There are seven families of dragonflies in the US–Emeralds are known for their glowing green eyes (hence the family name), and their endless, acrobatic flight. Like other members of this family, Prince Baskettails rarely land and can spend many hours in ceaseless flight. Look for this powerful flier making long, repeated, low patrols over open water habitats such as lakes, ponds, canals, and sluggish river sections.”

As a result of the repeated patrols, I was able to track the dragonfly as it flew by me and capture these images. The dragonfly did not get really close to the bank on which I was standing, so my autofocus would not detect my subject and I had to resort to focusing manually. I am pretty happy with the results and I encourage you to click on the images to see the beautiful markings on the body of this Prince Baskettail dragonfly.

Prince Baskettail

Prince Baskettail

Prince Baskettail

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Blue Dasher dragonflies

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 5, 2023| 8 Comments »

Although Blue Dashers (Pachydiplax longipennis) are among the most common dragonflies in my area during the summer, they are very special to me. I remember visiting a photography show by my dear friend Cindy Dyer in 2012, I believe, and marveling at the photos that she had taken of Blue Dasher dragonflies. I decided that I wanted to be able to take photos like hers of these beautiful creatures.

I went out on numerous occasions and she taught me a lot about both the creative and technical sides of photography. She also served as a muse to me, encouraging me and gently pushing me along my path. She had a well-established blog and decided that I needed one too, so on 7 July 2012, she sat me down I created my blog. My first blog posting on the same day was entitled Blue Dasher dragonfly and it featured a male Blue Dasher dragonfly in the obelisk position, similar to the pose of the dragonfly in the final photo in today’s post. That’s one of the main reasons why Blue Dashers are so special to me.

I spotted these Blue Dashers, all of which are males, on Monday during a brief visit to Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. Each of the three photos represents a different approach I used in attempting to capture the”feel” of my encounters with these dragonflies. The first image shows the details of colors and patterns of the body quite well. The second image gives you a sense of their environment. The final photo focuses on the obelisk pose that is believed to be a form of thermoregulation—by raising its abdomen the dragonfly reduces its exposure to the direct sunlight on hot days.

Some days I will post only a single photo, but most often I enjoy posting a small set of photos that complement each other and provide different perspectives on the living creatures that I love to photograph. Beauty is everywhere.

 

Blue Dasher

Blue Dasher

Blue Dasher

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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New Top Blog Post

Posted in Birds, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, Reptiles, snake, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on July 4, 2023| 13 Comments »

How many views does one of my blog posts need to get for me to consider it “successful” or “popular?” On a good day, my blog receives about 100 views, of which 60 may be related to that day’s post. If a post receives over a 100 views over time, I’ll consider it to be one of my top posts.

However, WordPress has a mind of its own, and the most-viewed postings, in my view, are not necessarily the best-written ones or the ones with my best photos. Some of the posts continue to receive views years after they were written thanks to searches on Google and other search engines. Even then, some subjects seem to go in and out of popularity on the search engines as a result of ever-changing algorithms.

For many years, my most popular blog posting was one from 4 November 2014 entitled Rescue of an Injured Bald Eagle that documented the rescue of the eagle by an a county animal control officer at my local marshland park. I was lucky enough to be present during the rescue operation and my photos (including a link to my blog posting) were picked up by several on-line news organizations in the Washington D.C. area. As a result, that posting has had 3,475 views to date, including 3,290 views during the initial month of the posting.

Bald Eagle rescue

This month, another blog posting has taken over the lead from the posting of the eagle rescue. My new top post is now a 9 May 2016 blog posting called Blue-eyed Garter Snake. Although this posting had only 70 views during its initial month, it now has had 3,512 views, including 438 views in 2023.

garter snake

Another posting may soon overtake the eagle rescue posting. The 3 August 2013 posting entitled Fuzzy White Caterpillar currently has had a total of 3,442, only 72 of which came during its initial month. Neither the writing or the photos in that posting are all that great, but I suspect that the title is so generic that it comes up often in Google searches.

fuzzy white caterpillar

One final contender for the top post is a 31 August 2013 posting entitled Red-footed Cannibalfly. This posting has had 3,169 views, of which 61 came in its initial month. For five years in a row it had over 350 annual views and appeared on the first page of Google results. Something changed, however, and it has fallen in the Google rankings since 2018, though it still appears as the fifth entry in a Bing search of “Red-footed Cannibalfly.”

red-footed cannibalfly

To be perfectly honest, I do not really care that much about views. I use this blog as a means to express myself creatively in my writing and in my photos. I am grateful for the modest success that I have enjoyed and even more thankful for the community of supportive people who have encouraged and supported me over the years.

I made my first posting on 7 July 2012, so I will soon be celebrating an anniversary. According to WordPress, my postings have had 403,801 views to date and I am thankful for each and every one of them and for all of you.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Ovipositing Eastern Amberwing

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 3, 2023| Leave a Comment »

During a recent visit to Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge I was delighted to spot a female Eastern Amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera) as she was depositing her eggs in the vegetation in a small pond. Initially she would hover for a moment, as you can see in the first image, and then dip the tip of her abdomen straight downwards to release some eggs, as shown in the second image. The dragonfly repeated this process multiple times at this spot before moving on to other spots.

I have observed this process multiple times, but have rarely been able to photograph it. Eastern Amberwings are the smallest dragonflies in my area and are only about an inch (25 mm) in length, so they are a challenge to photograph. Fortunately when the female is ovipositing, she hovers a bit, which gives me time to focus on her. Sharp-eyed viewers may have noticed that the wings of this dragonfly have patterns, but are not amber in color—only male Eastern Amberwings have amber wings.

Eastern Amberwing

Eastern Amberwing

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Common Baskettail in flight

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on July 2, 2023| 6 Comments »

Whenever I see a dragonfly in flight when I am traipsing about with my camera, I can’t help but stop and try to get a photograph of the dragonfly in the air. My success rate in not high, but sometimes I am able to capture a good image as the dragonfly zooms by me.

In mid-June I spotted a Common Baskettail dragonfly (Epitheca cynosura) as it flew back and forth over the pond at Jackson Miles Wetland Refuge. During one of its passes I managed to freeze its motion in this shot. I like the way that you can see all four wings and also the distinctive markings on its body. The bluish-green eyes really “pop” and if you look really closely, you can see the that the dragonfly folds its legs under its thorax (the torso part of its body) while it is flying.

I returned yesterday from my five-day trip up to Massachusetts and Maine to deal with a family emergency. Hopefully I will be able to get out this week and capture some new images. It’s hard to believe that it is already July.

Common Baskettail

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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A brief pause

Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, Summer, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on June 27, 2023| 7 Comments »

I just wanted to alert readers who may be used to me publishing a blog posting almost every day that I will be absent from this space for the rest of this week. A family emergency requires me to travel to Massachusetts and Maine and I will not have access to the internet for most of this time.

I decided though to leave you with a shot of a dragonfly facing away. While I was exploring Occoquan Regional Park earlier this month, I managed to get only a single angled view of this dragonfly before it flew away, but it was enough to confirm that it was my first Carolina Saddlebags dragonfly (Tramea carolina) of the season. Despite the odd angle, I was able to capture the patches on the hind wings that are thought to resemble “saddlebags” and its distinctive red color, so identification was not a problem.

I really like the colors and patterns of this shot, which has more of an “artsy” feel rather than a “scientific” one. Normally eye contact is desirable with a subject, but I look at that “rule” as more of a suggestion than a requirement.

Carolina Saddlebags

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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