Morning Rendezvous

Spent a few hours this morning being mesmerized by dragonflies and damselflies at a pond.  The whole scenery was alive with the buzzing of various dragonflies and damselflies such that I was totally enraptured!

As I watched, my heart went out to this Platylestes heterostylus as a Pseudagrion australasiae kept attacking it as it perched on a stem, chasing it away.  It took a while, and several perches later, before it found peace of mind and eventually began its morning stretching routine by flexing and swinging its abdomen in an aerobic workout.

This Pseudagrion australasiae is really quite a bully...

One of the Lestes praemorsus at the pond.  There were quite a number of them, all perched quite inconspicuously, minding their own business, each in its own world of daydreams.

I wonder what happened to that wing of this Neurothemis fulvia?  Looks as if it's been scorched.  Doesn't it make you wonder?

The Aethriamanta gracilis was rather flighty but finally managed to take a few photos.  Spotted several of them this morning.

Also spotted about five of these tiny yellow damselflies of the species Ceriagrion calamineum.

A contrast to the yellow damselfly above is this dashing red dragonfly, the Urothemis signata.

A number of these hovered near my feet.  These really tiny Agriocnemis femina could easily dart away and disappear from sight in a fraction of a second.

These damselflies sharing a twig.

And another favourite hangout on a twig with more than just one damselfly.

And then, there was also this bee that had me distracted for a bit.....

What a great morning indeed!

Spreadwings In Tandem

Came across two species of the spreadwings today. 
Both are already in my checklist.

Nevertheless, as I do not often find them, it is always nice to get the opportunity for more photos, and hopefully better photos, of these species.

The Platylestes heterostylus is pictured above (female) and on the left (male) while the Lestes praemorsus (male) is shown on the right.

Both these damselflies of the family Lestidae are very similar looking but for the colour and markings...

And finding this tandem pair of Platylestes heterostylus has certainly made my day!

A rare find indeed!

Spreadwings In Wheel

It is quite a rare occasion for me to spot two different species of the Lestidae family at the same location in one morning.  I was elated.

Hence, spotting the Spreadwing damselfies in wheel had me jumping for joy.

Literally speaking.

I did not actually jump for joy in the physical sense in case these damselflies take off in flight and I miss the opportunity for a few photos.  Otherwise I would have.

And although I did not manage to get the best photos of these damselflies in wheel position or the "Photo Of The Year" as I like to call it, it was still good to have managed to get a few shots. 

The difficulty was in getting a good angle for the shoot while at the same time trying not to disturb the damselflies and scare them away.  And then there's all the grasses that got in the way of getting a good view.....

Here is the pair of Lestes praemorsus in wheel position.

 

 

I was lucky to have spotted them when I did because I had time for just a few shots before they broke off from the wheel position but remained in tandem.

 

 

Soon after that, the female damselfly started ovipositing into the grassy pond with the male damselfly in contact guarding until the last of the fertilized eggs have been laid.

 

 

I am happy to have had the chance to observe this behaviour of this damselfy species.

 

 

To read more about this damselfly and for more photos, click on 'Lestes' in the Tags below.

 

 

Lestidae - Lestes praemorsus

A Blue Spreadwing Damselfly!

I sat on the grassy edge of the pond to watch the dragonflies buzzing around and I watched the territorial displays of several male dragonflies as they chase away other rival males that had crossed the invisible boundaries that I could not see.

It was mostly just the common species of dragonflies that I see everywhere all the time.  Still... it calms my mind and soothes my spirit to just sit there and watch all their antics.  The spirit of the dragonfly gives me a sense of harmony and strength.

So...  it was a while before I noticed a shadow and spotted a damselfly perched vertically on a plant stem under the shade of a large leaf.

 

 

A spreadwing damselfly!

Once I got close enough for a good look, I realised I had chanced upon another species to add to the checklist!  What a nice surprise!

 

 

This damselfy is the Lestes praemorsus of the family Lestidae.  The male has hindwing length of 21mm.  Both the eyes and thorax is of a powder blue colour with some dark markings on its body and the bent tip of its abdomen gives it a hockey-stick appearance.  No, it is not a deformity as I had initially thought.

It perched there undeterred as I inched closer. 

Soon after that, it started flexing its abdomen like a gymnast performing on the high bar. 

 

 

It's graceful movements were quite mesmerizing!

I've got a big grin on my face!