July 3, 2022 — Calumet County
Miller Pond on Stommel Road near the cell tower.
Twelve-spotted Skimmer (
Libellula pulchella)
Photographed
Widow Skimmer (
Libellula luctuosa)
Photographed
Female or juvenile widow skimmer. Also photo of male widow skimmer illustrating beautiful network of veins. Multiples of the species observed. Behavior observed--the dragonflies would flush from undergrowth approximately 6-20 feet from the edge of the pond, fly a short distance and land again in the undergrowth. I unwittingly contributed to the demise of three of the species, given that when they flushed, opportunistic birds pursued and plucked them from the air or on the ground. I did save one by chasing the bird before it could get to the dragonfly, and the widow skimmer escaped!
Blue Dasher (
Pachydiplax longipennis)
Photographed
Juvenile and male blue dasher.
Eastern Pondhawk (
Erythemis simplicicollis)
Photographed
Female eastern pondhawk.
Red Saddlebags (
Tramea onusta)
Photographed