Tag Archives: Flame Skimmer

• 2 Comments

•

Last Saturday Rozanne Rapozo was at a friend's lily pond in Gualala. There she found dragonflies, as they zipped around like the tiny helicopters they are. The first is the orange Flame Skimmer. Look how very nicely this dragonfly posed for Rozanne. They never do that for me!

And here is an Eight-spotted Skimmer.

A Blue Dancer was also spotted, but that will be for another post.

Thanks to Rozanne for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

This morning fog blanketed the coast and a ways inland. It pulled back as the morning progressed, at least in Anchor Bay. It's in the low 70's with a...you guessed it!...a breeze. Happy Summer Equinox!

 

• 2 Comments

•

I've been working on an article about dragonflies and I've learned so many interesting facts about them. They evolved over 300 million years ago, long before dinosaurs. Craig Tooley sent along several photos that he has taken over the years. One of them was this beauty, which Kathy Biggs identified as a Variegated Meadowhawk.

My, what purple eyes you have, Variegated Meadowhawk Dragonfly!

Here's a photo I took of a Flame Skimmer, which landed on top of a sprinkler head in my garden, and posed long enough for me to get a photo.

Then the dragonfly, moved, turned around, and let me get a photo of the back.

I love these creatures! Kathy Biggs has a great booklet out entitled "Common Dragonflies of California, a Beginner's Pocket Guide." I highly recommend it.

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo with you here. You can see much more of Craig's nature photography at www.ruffimage.com

• 2 Comments

•

When the weather warms up, dragonflies grace us with their presence. This first one landed on a sprinkler head in our garden. It's a Flame Skimmer. Isn't it exquisite?

Flame Skimmer Dragonfly on my sprinkler head by Jeanne JacksonAnd here is an Eight-spotted Skimmer I photographed at Bower Park on the Gualala Ridge. (Thanks to Ron LeValley for the identification!)

Eight-spotted Dragonfly at Bower Park by Jeanne JacksonAnd here's a photo of a Blue Dancer, taken by Craig Tooley. It is in our book, Mendonoma Sightings Throughout the Year!Blue Dasher Dragonfly October at the Art Center by Craig TooleyThanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

 

• 1 Comment

•

An orange Dragonfly - Libellula saturata - visited my garden in Anchor Bay. In our courtyard we have a small pond with a waterfall flowing from an old-growth Redwood stump. The Rough-skinned Newt is still in residence in the pond. A few days ago I noticed this beautiful naiad flitting around the plants by the pond. This jewel-like Dragonfly eats moths, flies, ants and other insects. Welcome to my garden, male Flame Skimmer!