Another Blue Damselfly

Since the padi fields have been flooded, I have found another haunt for my 'hunting'.  And it is also not far from home.  This is a pond with slow moving water, almost stagnant, and there are also grassy areas in the pond.  Another perfect spot for quite a few species of dragonflies and damselflies.

I had a field day!

 

 

This blue damselfly is the Pseudagrion microcephalum of the family Coenagrionidae.  I actually came across this damselfly a few months ago at another grassy pond but it was a large pond there and I could not get close enough for a good photo.  Even here in this small pond, I was still straining, but at least I can now get a good look at this damselfly.

The Pseudagrion microcephalum has hindwing length of 18mm and can be found on drains and ponds.  The females have patterns of olive green, pale blue and black and this species is actually widespread in the Indo-Australian tropics.  It has a paler blue compared to the Prodasineura laidlawii, so it is not as striking in colour but not less of a beauty anyway.

I did not see any mating pair in wheel position but I did come across a pair in tandem as they remain perched on a grass stalk after copulation.  Later, they flew about looking for a spot for the female to lay her eggs.

 

 

While flying in tandem looking for a suitable place for oviposition, I actually observed another male damselfly of the same species come near to this pair.  A short chase then ensued to get this intruder away while the pair still remained in tandem.

Finally, having found the right spot, the female proceeded to lay her eggs.  The male damselfly of this species engaged in contact guarding of the female in that the pair remained in tandem after copulation and during oviposition.

 

 

You can see from the photo above that the head of the female damselfly was barely just above the waterline while she oviposited into some grass stem in the pond.  At some point, she was completely dunked into the water and I could only watch in horror and amazement at the same time.

 

 

In the photo above, only the folded wings of the female damselfly could be seen out of the water.  Her whole head and body had been completely dunked into the pond during oviposition.

Seeing is believing.....

Anyway, you can see from some photos of odonata that these dragonflies and damselflies have tiny hairs on their heads and bodies.  And I have since learned that there are some species of odonata where the female would dive under the water's surface to oviposit.  These tiny hairs create a pocket of air so they would still be able to breathe while underwater, long enough to complete oviposition.

Amazing creatures, aren't they?