Dragonflies and Damselflies ... but first, a moth -- Virginia Ctenucha, a lovely creature that I've seen in several locations during recent perambulations ...
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| Virginia Ctenucha |
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| Virginia Ctenucha |
Next, a brief sampling of recent dragonflies ...
Slaty Skimmer and Widow Skimmer ...
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| Slaty Skimmer |
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| Widow Skimmer |
... and a damselfly, the
Ebony Jewelwing ...
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| Ebony Jewelwing |
Closing out this post are three damselflies - which also illustrate the challenges of these almost imaginary insects.
The first is a
Marsh Bluet - probably - since according to Lam's "Damselflies of the Northeast," this species is nearly identical to 3 other species and can only be reliably identified by examining the shape of male 's cerci - and that requires netting it, then using a magnifying glass.
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| Marsh Bluet (? probable or ? possible) |
The next 2 can be identified in the field with binoculars or a camera and I am reasonably certain on the IDs:
Northern Bluet and Aurora Damsel:
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| Northern Bluet |
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| Aurora Damsel |
Hope you can get outside and enjoy the wonders of the season.
3 comments:
The moth looks like the one I photographed:
http://countrycitycindy.blogspot.com/2015/06/friday-snapshots-moth-identification.html
Nice pictures!
Hi Chris,
You have some very interesting Skimmers and the various blue damsels here in the UK also provide me with an ID challenge.
Nature is everywhere, I love your butterflies.
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