Species of the Month

November Species of the Month: River Jewelwing (Calopteryx aequabilis)

This month’s DSA species’ focus is the River Jewelwing (Calopteryx aequabilis). They are in the family Calopterygidae, known as the broad-winged damselflies. River Jewelwings are large damselflies, measuring a little over one-and-a-half inches to a little more than two inches (43-54 mm), and distributed widely across parts of southern Canada and the northern United States. Read on to hear veteran dragonfly chaser and former DSA officer Steve Valley tell about his close encounters with the species. 

The Jewels of Cox Creek

Many years ago, I had given up on finding interesting odonates on Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park in Albany, Oregon, because it was heavily impacted by human activity. The creek is channeled between farm fields as it flows across the Willamette Valley, picking up agricultural runoff. In Timber Linn Park, it flows into a small man-made lake that has a large population of ducks and geese, and also hosted a “timber carnival” with all sorts of water-based human activities, from 1941-2000.  

Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon is a little odonate wilderness in a city. Photo by Steve Valley, 2023.

Over the years, all the interesting odonate habitats in my area had become filled in or degraded with pollution and/or invasive plants. Then, several years ago, I discovered a nice population of River Jewelwings (Calopteryx aequabilis) on Cox Creek. It’s a fitting name for the genus: Calopteryx: from the Greek means "kalos" (beautiful), and "pteron" translates as wing or feather.

Prior to this discovery the nearest population was 30 minutes to an hour’s drive away from my home. Now I had them on a little stream five minutes from home. Not only were there Jewelwings, but also American Rubyspots (Hetaerina americana).

A male Calopteryx aequabilis perched on a yellow flower. I have tried getting shots of one perched on these yellow flowers for 4 seasons and finally got as close as I could focus for about 10 minutes! Photo by Steve Valley 5-Jul-2023, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

A female Calopteryx aequabilis perched on a willow leaf surveys her territory. Photo by Steve Valley 15-Jul-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

Cox Creek has turned out to be very productive, with a rich species diversity for a habitat surrounded by a city, next to a small local airport and a freeway. There, at the stream—wading, observing, and photographing—it is almost as if I have been transported to my own little wilderness.

River Jewelwings are large damselflies with dark semi-translucent wings. Both sexes have structural metallic colored bodies with the male being predominantly dark bluish green and the female being a lighter bronzy green. Structural colors are caused by the refraction of certain colors of light rather than being from colored pigments, but in insects pigments are often involved also. The wings of the males are black on the distal half beyond the nodus and a smoky translucent on the proximal half. The costa vein is also metallic bluish green. The female’s wings are dark, smoky and translucent with a white pseudostigma located where you would find the stigma in other damselfly species’ wings. Both sexes use the wings for various displays (stay tuned!).

An immature female, note the light colored eyes and subtle metallic colors on the face and the distinctive antennae with the L-shaped scape. Photo by Steve Valley 24-May-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

A mature female, note the eyes have darkened and the metallic areas on the face have shifted to mostly reddish and much of the face has darkened including part of the antennae scape. A slight shift in perspective also shows the lightening of the area around the mouth. Photo by Steve Valley 14-Aug-2023, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

An immature male with light orange eyes and fairly bright metallic areas of the face. Photo by Steve Valley 16-May-2023, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

A mature male, note the eyes have darkened to almost black and much of the face has darkened as well. Photo by Steve Valley 20-Jul-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

I have been fortunate to see all five North American Jewelwing species. All are large, showy damselflies with complex behaviors. In 2020, early in the Covid pandemic,  I started visiting Cox Creek daily with my camera, attempting to shoot any odonates that would let me approach closely. I had lots of time to closely observe the River Jewelwings, which can be amazingly wary, but it did seem that they slowly became acclimatized to my presence.

I was surprised when the Cox Creek population turned out to be the largest, densest population of River Jewelwings I have ever encountered. They were usually the earliest species I would see in the mornings, and stayed active until six to seven pm. I primarily concentrated my observations along a 200 meter length of stream (about 650 feet), but spent about 75 percent of my time on a 50 meter (about 164 feet) stretch in the middle of that. I noted that some males seemed to defend the same territories on multiple sequential days, sometimes from the same favored perch. While perched, both males and females will occasionally flare their wings open and closed.

A male flares its wings. Photo by Steve Valley 30-Jun-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

Sometimes it seems to be a display in response to members of the same sex perching nearby, but other times there is not an obvious (to me) target of the display.

Both sexes also often slide their abdomen up between their wings (I call this the “wing envelope” posture), but I don’t know if this pose is a display for nearby River Jewelwings or perhaps a way of regulating abdomen temperature.

A male in the “wing envelope” posture that seems to be their default preferred resting position. Photo by Steve Valley 30-Jun-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

Males are aggressively territorial with other males and will lunge at rival males that land nearby. These interactions can escalate into aerial dogfights that may last up to 10 minutes. They may be joined by males in adjacent territories, and include intricate high-speed chases which can cover 30 meters (about 100 feet) of stream length. Sometimes peripheral males will sneak in and try to occupy the territory while the residents are distracted. 

Males perform a distinctive display directly in front of and very close to females where they hover, bobbing up and down slightly. The pattern of wingbeats when they are doing this maneuver is distinct from all other flight and it is usually performed close to the water surface. Then occasionally, the male will balance on the tips of his hindwings on the water surface in a truly extraordinary “cross display”.

A male performs the cross display where he balances on the tips of his hindwings on the surface of the water. This amazing shot was made by Steve Russell who wrote: “A male River Jewelwing damselfly does his best to entice the female he is chasing to mate with him. Having witnessed this many times now, I am certain that he skims his wings on the water on purpose as part of the "dance." Alas, she rebuffed him and he returned to his strategic perch ready to try again. Photo by Steve Russell 3-Jul-2023, , Black River, Grays Harbor Co., Washington.

We can speculate about how this suite of behaviors developed and evolved, but it looks like fertile ground for more observations and experimentation.

Females also seem to exhibit territorial behavior toward neighboring females by hopping around and landing near intruding females and making frequent wing flare displays.

A young female starts to flare her wings at a nearby female. Photo by Steve Valley 29-Jun-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

I have also observed females landing in front of males and displaying. They often perch just a bit above the male. Over the course of five to 15 minutes, they will hop down closer until the male flies up and grasps her to copulate.

A female approaches a male from above as he displays just prior to copulation. Photo by Steve Valley 16-Jul-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

Copulation can last for more than an hour. The male will lead the female in tandem down to the portion of the stream where he wants her to oviposit. She then submerges and will spend 10-30 minutes clinging to the plant and ovipositing under the watchful eyes of her mate. On Cox Creek, the eggs are inserted into submerged plants that are rooted in the stream bottom and wave in the current, occasionally reaching the surface where she will land. 

I watched a lone female enter a male’s territory and attempt to oviposit, only to be attacked by the male who hovered in front of her and repeatedly bumped her until she flew off. His female immediately landed and began ovipositing while I photographed her.

A female oviposits while completely submerged, often for 30 minutes or more, with a bubble of air trapped between her wings that acts as an aqualung. The male usually is perched nearby the whole time observing. Photo by Steve Valley 22-Jul-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

A female oviposits while completely submerged, often for 30 minutes or more, with a bubble of air trapped between her wings that acts as an aqualung. The male usually is perched nearby the whole time observing. Photo by Steve Valley 22-Jul-2022, Cox Creek in Timber Linn Park, Albany, Oregon.

After observing this population for four seasons, I have the impression that at least some pairs form a pair-bond that endures for multiple days. In 2024, I hope to conduct marking studies to confirm or refute that hypothesis and to broaden my understanding of River Jewelwing adult behavior dynamics.

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Steve Valley is a founding member of DSA, and served as its secretary for many years. He started studying odonates in the 1950s and photographing them in the 1960s when he was a teenager. He was an entomologist and insect imaging specialist at the Oregon Department of Agriculture for many years, and a pioneer in the field of extreme macro focus stacking using high resolution microscope optics and cutting edge digital cameras. Since his retirement in 2017, he has concentrated his extreme macro work on odonates rather than invasive pest insects with his own custom built imaging system. He lives in Albany, Oregon with his wife Robin.

Steve would like to express his thanks to his wife, Robin, for proofreading and suggestions, and to Steve Russell for permission to use his spectacular photo included in this post.

ARGIA 35(3) is Available for Download

ARGIA 35(3) is Available for Download

The latest issue of ARGIA, the DSA's quarterly news journal, is available on the DSA's website.

This issue of ARGIA contains:

A summary of all that occurred at the 2023 DSA Annual Meeting in Oklahoma.

The minutes from the Business Meeting at the Annual Meeting.

The next Nymph Cove installment, which discusses how to differentiate between the different genera of Corduliidae

Some wonderful photographs of odes in, on, and under the water.

And more!

DSA members can login to download the issue.

Jim Johnson, the DSA Secretary, has kindly agreed to take over the ARGIA layout for me and this is the first issue that we have completed together, so we are working through some growing pains and apologize for the tardiness of the issue.

Amanda Whispell
Editor-in-chief of ARGIA

Species of the Month

October Species of the Month: Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni)

October’s DSA Species of the Month is the Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni).  The Petaltails (so called due to the broad, flat claspers of males that resemble flower petals) are a group of 11 species found in Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Japan and North America. The Black Petaltail—​​a mid-sized dragonfly, 5.3-5.9 mm (~2 inches) in length–is found from southern British Columbia in Canada, through western Washington and Oregon, and into California as far south as Sequoia National Park.  They are associated with many mountain ranges in these regions: the Cascades, Olympics, Coast Range, Klamaths, and Sierra Nevadas.  Their habitats are often found at mid-elevations, 3,000-4,000 ft (900-1200m), but can reach 8,000 ft (2400 m), especially in the southern end of their distribution. Here we’ll explore the ecology and life history of these dragonflies with DSA President Chris Beatty.

A Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) adult perched on a cobra lily (Darlingtonia californica).  Photo by Cary Kerst (Probably Josephine County, Oregon 2009).

In a Hole in the Ground…

In a hole in the ground there lived a…dragonfly?  Not exactly the way that J.R.R. Tolkien begins The Hobbit, but true enough for our topic today, the Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni).

Over the last 15 years I spent many summer days exploring the seeps and wet meadows of northern California and western Oregon looking for this species. My search often begins by looking for holes in the ground.

A view of Cherry Hill Meadow in Lassen National Forest, Butte County, California.  Wet meadows like these are a primary habitat for Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) nymphs.  Photo by Christopher Beatty, 2010.

Petaltails are an odd group of dragonflies in many ways.  Their nymphs, while aquatic like other dragonflies, live in seepy stream banks and sunny meadows, where springs keep the ground saturated with cool water.  If you take a walk across these meadows be prepared to get your feet wet; each footfall will land with a ‘squelch’, and your footprint will rapidly fill with water.  You will also find thick layers of moss, and often carnivorous plants like sundew (Drosera sp.) or the cobra lily (Darlingtonia californica).  As you scout around, bent over to see the ground clearly, you will from time to time find a small round opening. That’s the entrance to the burrow home of a Black Petaltail nymph.

Like most other petaltail species, Black Petaltail nymphs dig and maintain these burrows throughout their lives, clearing them out and expanding them as they grow larger.  Depending on the type of substrate, these burrows may go down as much as half a meter (about one and a half feet), and sometimes have small chambers at the bottom.  The burrow fills with water from the saturated soil, so the nymphs are still aquatic.  Two other petaltail species, the Gray Petaltail (Tachopteryx thoreyi) and the Chilean Petaltail (Phenes raptor) appear to have given up this burrowing behavior. They still live in fens and seeps, under leaves and other detritus at the surface, coming awfully close to being terrestrial nymphs.

Up-close view of a Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) burrow entrance.  The entrance is approximately 1 cm in diameter.  Photo by Christopher Beatty, 2010.

A Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) nymph recently extracted from its burrow by Katie Harding.  Photo by Christopher Beatty, 2010.

Another odd thing about Petaltails is how long they live.  Most species are thought to spend several years as a nymph. The Black Petaltail is estimated to take five years from egg to adult, a very long time indeed for a dragonfly!  At the end of that long period of time they emerge like other dragonflies, flying for six to eight weeks or possibly more in a favorable season. The adult Black Petaltail is black-brown with yellow markings on the thorax and abdomen, a cream face, and brown eyes set apart on its head. Petaltails like to land on light colored surfaces, like boulders or old dried logs.  They are very docile, and will often settle on your hat, shirtsleeve or net, especially if you are wearing light colored clothing.  They are often observed landing on tree trunks, especially later in the day.

A Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) adult catching a ride on the author’s backpack.  Photo by Christofer Brothers, 2023.

A Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) adult finds another good perch. Photo by Christofer Brothers, 2023.

The Petaltails are suggested to be a very old family, as much as 160 million years, and the Black Petaltail is estimated to have separated from its sister species in Japan (Tanypteryx pryeri) around 70 million years ago, making them very old species—even older than the mountains they live in.  Maybe even older than old Smaug, the great dragon of Middle Earth, himself.

Black Petaltail (Tanypteryx hageni) adult perched on a tree trunk.  Photo by Ethan Tolman, 2023.

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Our October contributor, Christopher Beatty, is an evolutionary ecologist who works with dragonflies and damselflies. His research has taken him to sites in the U.S. and Canada, as well as Spain, Portugal, Kenya, Peru, Colombia, the Fiji Islands and New Zealand. He is a co-editor of the 2 nd edition of Dragonflies and Damselflies: Model Organisms for Ecological and Evolutionary Research with Oxford University Press. He is also a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University. He lives in California with his wife Katie and their son Thomas.

Species of the Month

September Species of the Month: Pondhawks of REGUA (Erythemis sp.)

September’s DSA Species of the Month is a look at several of the Pondhawks of Brazil. There are ten species of pondhawks (Erythemis sp.) world-wide, and Brazil is home to at least eight of them. Pondhawks range in size from 38 mm (approximately 1 ½ inches) to about 59 mm (approximately 2 ⅓ inches) Dennis Paulson notes that members of this genus are voracious predators. You may find them in ponds, marshes, or even (as our blogger did) in some surprising places! Join dragonfly chaser Kim Smith as she encounters pondhawks on an adventure in Brazil.

Claret Pondhawk (Erythemis mithroides), Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu, Brazil, 1-17-23. Copyright Kim Smith.

Pondhawks of REGUA (Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu), Brazil

In January, I left my Ohio home in the Midwestern United States to spend a week watching Odonata at Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu (REGUA). REGUA is located in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, not far from Rio de Janeiro. They are restoring  18,000 acres from degraded farmland to native forest and wetlands. It seems to be a magnificent success—REGUA has documented 200 species of Odonata! The lodge rooms are simple, but very comfortable. The food was a series of tasty Brazilian dishes.

While I traveled solo,  and was able to roam their extensive trail system safely without a guide,  I chose to take advantage of their knowledgeable and friendly guides twice. We traveled to locations outside of the preserve for even more variety. 

Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu (REGUA), Brazil January 2023. Copyright Kim Smith.

Of the many beautiful species I saw for the first time on this trip, I was particularly enchanted by the pondhawks. In my home state of Ohio, we only have one Erythemis species, the Eastern Pondhawk (E. simplicicollis). There are ten species of this genus worldwide, and eight of them are known from REGUA.

Prior to leaving for Brazil, I’d purchased Tom Kompier’s wonderful A Guide to the Dragonflies and Damselflies of the Serra dos Orgaos, and hoped to find as many species as possible. Despite my low tolerance for the extreme heat, and heavy afternoon rains that kept me indoors, I was able to document four pondhawk species on my trip.

Dragonfly Guide by Kompier

Pondhawks are skimmers known for their frequent taking of larger prey insects including other dragonflies. Also of note, according to odonata expert Dennis Paulson, obelisking for temperature regulation has not been observed among the members of this genus. The habitats I visited were all ponds with emergent and floating vegetation, and so were prime hunting territory for Erythemis. I saw many individuals at most locations, but my only Great Pondhawk ( E. vesiculosa) observation was at a roadside puddle.

Great Pondhawk (Erythemis vesiculosa), Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu, Brazil, 1-19-23. Copyright Kim Smith.

I spent a couple days exploring the main wetlands at REGUA, which hosted large numbers of two species with blazing red abdomens, impossible to miss as they seemed to glow under cloudy skies. Red isn’t a common color among my local Ohio Odonata, and occurs primarily in the meadowhawks (Sympetrum sp.). But our red meadowhawks’ abdomens are marked with black along the sides, whereas the Flame-tailed Pondhawks (E. peruviana) and Claret Pondhawks (E. mithroides) in Brazil had solid red abdomens that screamed, “Look at me!” 

Claret Pondhawk (Erythemis mithroides), Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu, Brazil, 1-17-23. Copyright Kim Smith.

The Flame-tailed was particularly striking with its clearly divided black and red portions, as if someone had held its head and dipped the abdomen in scarlet paint right up to S3.

Flame-tailed Pondhawk (Erythemis peruviana), Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu, Brazil, 1-16-23. Copyright Kim Smith.

The last species I photographed was also abundant, although less colorful. The Pin-tailed Pondhawks (E. plebeja) were busily chasing each other around, and I observed several females ovipositing while guarded by hovering males.

Pin-tailed Pondhawk (Erythemis plebeja), Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu, Brazil, 1-16-23. Copyright Kim Smith.

While it's endlessly fascinating to see new species on my travels, it's also a comfort to return home to my familiar odonates. These days, whenever I watch our Eastern Pondhawk at local ponds, I have fond memories of its colorful relatives in Brazil.

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Our guest blogger for September is Kim Smith, an Odonata enthusiast in Toledo, Ohio. Kim leads local field trips to share her love of dragonflies and writes about them at NatureIsMyTherapy.com.  She recently served as the President of Toledo Naturalists’ Association and is on the board of the Oak Openings Region chapter of Wild Ones, a nonprofit that educates the public about the ecological importance of native plants. For more information on REGUA, visit  regua.org and learn more about this great dragonfly destination.

Species of the Month

August Species of the Month: Four-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata)

August’s DSA’s species of the month is the Four-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata). It is in the Skimmers Family (Libellulidae), considered North America’s largest dragonfly family, with more than 1,000 species worldwide. Measuring about 43 mm long (1.7 inches), they are often found in ponds, lakes, and slow streams. Its range includes North America, Japan, Europe, and Northwestern Africa. Join professional photographer Vic Berardi as he and his wife, Ann, experience an unusual dragonfly adventure.

Four-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata), Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL June 23, 2023. (Copyright Vic Berardi)

An Explosion of Four-spotted Skimmers

One might think a writeup about the Four-spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata) wouldn’t be all that special. However, when you see over 200 of them in a relatively small area you realize something different is happening.

Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL June 23, 2023. (Copyright Vic Berardi)

On June 23, 2023 my wife Ann and I went to Sand Pond, part of the northern unit of Illinois Beach State Park near Zion, IL, about 20 minutes from our home. Lake County describes Sand Pond as a 20-acre glacial lake that empties into Kellogg Creek, and eventually, Lake Michigan. That day, the forecast called for rain. Instead, the sun came out and it was a beautiful day. 

Four-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata), Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL, June 23, 2023. (Copyright Vic Berardi)

As soon as we got out of our vehicle I noticed several Four-spotted Skimmers flying overhead.  When we started down the trail, we saw even more. The pond has a maximum depth of nine and half feet, and almost a mile of shoreline trail around its perimeter. The open places along the shoreline are usually full of fishermen, but there were only a few out that day. That made it easy to walk into the openings and look for more dragonflies. 

Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta) on the left; Four-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata) on the right; Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL June 23, 2023. (Copyright Vic Berardi)

At every opening to the shoreline we saw Four-spotted Skimmers.  I began a very conservative count. By the time we went full circle, I estimated we saw at least 200 of them! It was just incredible. I took many photos, and  I wanted to get more of multiple perched Four-spotted Skimmers. However, the photographer part of me wouldn’t allow anything blurred in a photo and besides, they didn’t stay perched very long in any one spot.

Two Four-Spotted Skimmers (Libellula quadrimaculata), Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL  June 23, 2023. (Copyright Vic Berardi)

The Four-spotted Skimmers appeared close to teneral. Their wings were in very good shape and they flew into spots that were underneath the branches and leaves of the bushes along the shoreline. None appeared to be flying with any power.

Four-Spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata), Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL, June 23, 2023. (Copyright Vic Berardi)

Ann and I are far from calling ourselves dragonfly experts. We just like to watch them, learn about them, and take photos of them whenever we can. However, after seeing so many Four-spotted Skimmers I was curious. When we got home, I read more about Four-spotted Skimmers and learned they are circumpolar, and are found around the northern hemisphere including Europe and the north Asian continent including Japan. In other parts of the world, they are referred to as the Four-spotted Chaser, with the same scientific name.

Four-Spotted Skimmer, Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL, June 23, 2023.  (Copyright Ann Berardi)

On social media, I saw that Ohio was having an explosion of Four-spotted Skimmers. Was that what was happening at Sand Pond? I don’t know! But, I would like to think we were seeing a large emergence year for them. We later saw a small swarm of Four-spotted Skimmers in Door County, part of northeastern Wisconsin, near Lake Michigan. 

It makes me wonder. What is going on?

Vic Berardi, Sand Pond, Illinois Beach State Park, Zion, IL (copyright Ann Berardi) June 23, 2023.

Our August contributor, Vic Berardi,  is an avid photographer and raptor enthusiast, especially in the fall when he spends many hours hawkwatching at the Illinois Beach State Park Hawkwatch. But in summer he and his wife Ann enjoy observing and learning all they can about dragonflies. They enjoy everything from visiting ponds close to home to week-long trips up to Door County, WI, to look for and photograph the Hine’s Emerald, (Somatochlora hineana). Contact him at  vbirdman@aol.com.

ARGIA 35(2) is available for download on the DSA website

The latest issue of ARGIA is available on the DSA website

This issue contains:

• The first president’s note from our new DSA president, Christopher Beatty.

• In memoriam sections dedicated to both Richard Rowe and Carl Cook.

• Our very first French-language article by authors Michel Savard and Alain Mochon.

• The next Nymph Cove installment, the second half of the Aeshnidae identification (also available for free on the DSA website)

DSA members can login to download the issue.

Amanda Whispell

Editor-in-chief of ARGIA

Species of the Month

July Species of the Month: Minagrion caldense

DSA’s July “Species of the Month” is Minagrion caldense (no common name),  a rare species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. The genus’ five species are found from Northeast Argentina to northern Brazil; this species is only found in Brazil. The various species range from about one-and-a-quarter inches to two-and-a-quarter inches (31-57mm), and are found in slow streams and swampy areas. Follow Brazilian dragonfly chaser Diogo Vilela as he seeks to learn more about this intriguing insect.

Minagrion caldense, young female, November 2018 (copyright Diogo Vilela).

Minagrion caldense

One of the most intriguing and rare species of the Neotropical genus Minagrion is M. caldense, which was described in 1965 from Poços de Caldas (hence, caldense), Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Less than 40 specimens were collected in the 60’s by Professor Newton Santos and no further collections of this species were made in the following decades. This makes M. caldense an enigmatic and rare species, as it was never seen in another location other than Poços de Caldas. 

In 2002, the late Professor Ângelo Machado and his colleague Lúcio Bedê performed a survey in Serra da Canastra National Park (SCNP, ca. 300km from Poços de Caldas), where they collected some specimens of M. caldense, and also found an intriguing “new species” of Minagrion, which they later described as “Minagrion franciscoi” (Machado & Bedê, 2016), based only on males.

 Serra da Canastra National Park, November 2018, (Copyright Diogo Vilela).

During my PhD, I aimed to describe hitherto unknown females, in order to straighten their taxonomy and enable identification in absence of males. Then, our laboratory went to a series of field trips to Serra da Canastra, totaling five expeditions between 2018 and 2020. It was an amazing experience to explore all areas of the park, where we found new species, new records, larvae and…undescribed females!

It was such a thrill when we finally found the female of “Minagrion franciscoi”, a robust Coenagrionidae that stands out next to the small Homeoura, Acanthagrion and Franciscobasis that shares the same habitat. However, in the midst of all excitement of our new findings, we started to see some major resemblances between “M. franciscoi” and the enigmatic M. caldense and realized that perhaps we were dealing with the same species. In his description of M. caldense, Santos stated that the male abdominal segments seven and eight were darker in relation to the others. In the same region, M. franciscoi had also darker coloration, with the addition of two gorgeous blue dorsal spots, that were the main character to separate “M. franciscoi” from the other Congeners. 

Minagrion caldense, teneral female, Serra da Canastra National Park, November 2018, (Copyright Diogo Vilela).

Santos described females as having the same subtle color changes as the males. Based on Santos’s description, we went further in our analysis: (i) we visited the Museu Nacional of Rio de Janeiro (destroyed by a fire in 2018), two months before the tragedy, and took photos of the holotype of M. caldense to perform the morphological comparison with M. franciscoi; (ii) as we haven’t spotted any mating event, we performed a molecular analysis to associate the males of M. franciscoi with the females; (iii) we performed a dissection analysis on the collected females, to determine which were young and mature by the presence/absence of eggs. 

Our results show that “M. franciscoi” was, in fact, a junior synonym of M. caldense, and our female analysis demonstrate that the females went through a severe coloration change during their ontogenetic development, being yellowish/orange as young, and with a beautiful blue/black pattern when mature. Additionally, young males do not present the blue abdominal spots. Perhaps Santos dealt only with young ones.

Male of “Minagrion franciscoi”, later discovered to be a junior synonym of M. caldense, November 2018 (Copyright Diogo Vilela).

Females of Minagrion caldense: above, the body coloration of the young female; below, the same for the mature female November 2018 (Ccopyright Diogo Vilela).

Despite all our studies, we still have several gaps to fill in our understanding of Minagrion: the larvae are unknown, ontogenetic color changes are not known to other species of the genus, and the knowledge on their behavior are very poor. This species is currently assessed as “Vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, due its restricted range of occurrence and for occurring in a single protected area, where it might be threatened by ecotourism.

Diogo Vilela, Serra da Canastra National Park, November 2018 (Copyright Rhainer Ferreira).

It was such a great experience working so closely with this species. I find them fantastic!

Diogo Vilela is a Brazilian odonatologist. He studies dragonflies since 2010, and ever since he published studies on behavioral ecology, distribution and taxonomy, where most of his contributions are concentrated. Contact him at deeogoo@gmail.com

Species of the Month

June Species of the Month: Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta)

June’s DSA species of the month is the Dot-tailed whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta). Part of the large family Libellulidae (the skimmers or perchers), it is on the small side for dragonflies, at about an inch to an inch-and-a-quarter long (approximately 29-33 mm). Look for it in lakes and ponds from southern Canada, south to Kentucky, east to Nova Scotia and west to California (dipping down into New Mexico). Follow Illinois dragonfly chaser  Gail Chastain as she looks for this common---but also sometimes elusive---species.

The Search for the Dot-tailed Whiteface

Field guides say that the Dot-tailed Whiteface dragonfly is common throughout southern Canada and the northern parts of the United States. I would not debate these experts, it’s just that although my husband, Steve, and I monitor a number of places in Illinois, we have not seen them at any of our sites. So, for the last few years we have traveled up to LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve in St Charles, IL, about 45 miles west of Chicago, to find them. Leroy Oakes has a variety of natural features; prairie, woodland, creek, seeps and more. It’s not too far from where we live in Wheaton, IL, and they seem to have a nice population.

Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta), LeRoy Oakes, FP (2021). Photo by Gail Chastain.

As its family name indicates, the Dot-tailed Whiteface can be seen perching on objects during the day. There are seven Whitefaced  Leucorrhinia species in the United States with the Dot-tailed Whiteface being the most widespread, found in 34 states in the U.S.,  and 10 Canadian provinces. Its conservation status changes with location, but overall it is considered to be abundant and secure.

Leucorrhinia is an appropriate name of this group of dragonflies. Leuco comes from the Greek meaning “white” as in leukocyte,  the white blood cell. Rhina also comes from the ancient Greek meaning “nose.” The Dot-tailed species name intacta is a little more difficult. Intacta is from the Latin for “unblemished/chaste”. One suggestion I found when I investigated was that this referred to the lone spot on the male, but there is nothing to support this. So, I guess we can make up what we want!

The Dot-tailed Whiteface has a very apt common name. The male generally has a solid black body and legs, and both a yellow dot on the seventh segment of the abdomen,  a creamy white face, and a small black basal wing spot.

Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta), LeRoy Oakes, FP (2002). Photo by Gail Chastain.

The female Is more colorful. She has multiple yellow spots along the dorsal and side of the abdomen, and the last yellow spot on segment seven may be large and square-shaped.  Females also have yellow stripes on the side (lateral surface) of segments of three and four. As the female matures, the dorsal spots will fade. When this happens, it’s easy to confuse females with males. Some females will also have a conspicuous amber patch where the wing attaches to the thorax.

Female Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta), LeRoy Oakes, FB (2021). Photo by Gail Chastain.

Why are they at Leroy Oakes Forest Preserve, and not in other areas where we monitor closer to home?  Probably because of the quiet waters in this preserve, which is their preferred environment.

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), On Quiet Pond, LeRoy Oakes, FP (2021). Gail Chastain.

These dragonflies look for wetlands such as bogs, marshes, swamps, sloughs and very slow streams with low aquatic plants to perch on. You can find them basking on the lily leaves on the water, or on vegetation nearby.

Dot-tailed Whiteface on water Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis scorpiodes), LeRoy Oakes, FB (2021). Photo by Gail Chastain.

Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta), LeRoy Oakes, FP. Photo by Gail Chastain.

The Dot-tailed Whiteface dragonfly emerges in late spring here in Illinois, and flies a good part of the summer. You won’t have to look up for them! They don’t fly very high. With a territory that may be only four yards wide, they don’t fly very far, either. They prefer to stay near the water.

Dot-tailed Whiteface on Water-Lily (Nupar lutea), LeRoy Oakes, FP (2021). Photo by Gail Chastain.

Although the Dot-tailed Whiteface is not necessarily an active defender of its territory, the male will actively guard the female he has mated with while she lays her eggs by flying above her as she oviposits. The males may also grab or clasp other males in a behavior that is called “karate guarding,” and will hold them in tandem to keep that intruding male away from a female.

Dot-tailed Whiteface (Leucorrhinia intacta), LeRoy Oakes, FP (2021). Photo by Gail Chastain.

It’s a fun dragonfly to find and photograph. The bonus is that when we do find the Dot-tailed Whiteface dragonfly, we find so much more.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) LeRoy Oakes FP. Photo by Gail Chastain.

Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans). LeRoy Oakes FP 2021. Photo by Gail Chastain.

Just one of the many perks of dragonfly chasing!  

Gail Chastain has been an avid naturalist and photographer for most of her life but retirement allowed her to further these interests. In 2012, Gail started a wildlife monitoring project at Fermilab in Batavia, IL. Later, her focus changed to insect monitoring with her husband Steve Baginski. Since 2018, Gail and Steve have been  Odonata monitors with the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL, at multiple sites.

Species of the Month

May Species of the Month: Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis)

Male Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL (undated).

Our May DSA species of the month is the Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis) in the skimmer family Libellulidae. It’s the only member of its genus. Ode expert Dennis Paulson notes the size is variable; with a range of 28-45 mm (one to 1.7 inches); and is often abundant where it’s found. Look for it in ponds and lakes in most of the central to eastern United States, north to Canada and south into Mexico. Join dragonfly chaser and DSA blog coordinator Cindy Crosby as her blue dasher dragonfly encounters lead to a face-off with a bigger species.

Adventures in Dragonfly chasing

Mama bison isn’t happy. And if mama bison ain’t happy… .

Bison (Bison bison), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2021)

I’m standing knee deep in a pond where I’ve fled with my binoculars, camera, net and clipboard. Just moments ago at Nachusa Grasslands in Franklin Grove, IL—90 miles west of Chicago—I was strolling along the shoreline, making hash marks on my data sheet. I’m one of a dozen or so citizen scientists here who volunteer to identify and count dragonflies and damselflies from March-October; just another way to measure the health of our wetlands, streams, and ponds. It is also a way to add data to the state of Illinois’ repository of insect information. This pond is full of the typical dragonfly species found in Illinois. 

Pond at Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2017)

Twelve-spotted skimmers. Eastern amberwings. Common white-tails. And then, there are the blue dashers. They are a common sight in the Illinois prairies and ponds I often hike, and I can count on tallying numerous individuals in the summer. Very predictable. Not too exciting.

Male Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis), The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2021)

Occasionally, an unusual dragonfly will show up. I have had a single sighting of the four-spotted skimmer at this Nature Conservancy preserve. It’s only one of two times I’ve seen it in my more than 17 years of dragonfly monitoring.

Four-spotted skimmer dragonfly (Libellula quadrimaculata), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2021)

So, I hike and patiently count the usual ode suspects. Widow skimmer. Eastern amberwing. Twelve-spotted skimmer. Twelve-spotted skimmer.  Another twelve-spotted skimmer. Then, I add hash marks for each blue dasher to my data sheet—so many blue dashers!---while alert for anything flying or perched that looks unusual. Who knows what might show up? I’m hoping for something exciting. Sometimes blue dasher dragonfly counting is a little monotonous.

Be careful what you wish for! Nachusa has a herd of about 125 bison, the first brought here in 2014 as part of an effort to restore tallgrass prairie. Illinois is known as “the prairie state,” but much of the prairie here — including the prairie wetlands—has been lost to agriculture and development. Many prairies were drained by farmers to make the wetlands dry enough to plow.

Of the approximately 22 million acres that once blanketed Illinois, only about 2,300 original prairie acres remain. The adult male bison who roam Nachusa Grasslands can weigh up to 2,000 lbs; female bison about half that much. Heavy? Yes. And also fast. Bison can run up to 40 miles per hour.

Regal Fritillary Butterfly (Speyeria idalia), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2021)

With the loss of that vast grasslands and its associated ephemeral ponds and streams came the loss of odonata habitat. I’m grateful to have almost 4,000 remnant or restored prairie acres to explore with other monitors, and to have the opportunity to observe what dragonflies and damselflies visit and reproduce here. Blue dashers may be plentiful, but they are also fun to watch. After mating, blue dasher males hover guard the females (flying circles around them above the water) while the females oviposit by tapping their abdomen tips into the water. I often see the males perched at even intervals along the shoreline.

Today, however, lulled into daydreaming as I counted familiar dragonflies, I’ve goofed. I’m usually on high alert for the presence of bison. So I’m dismayed when I cross a small hill close to the pond and there they are. A mama bison with her baby. 

Bison (Bison bison) calf, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

Mama bison are very protective of their calves and this one is no exception. Her head jerks up as I pop into view and her eyes meet mine. Uh, oh. I quickly backtrack toward the pond, hoping she’ll return to grazing. No luck. Here she comes, over the rise. Stumbling through the tallgrass, I wade into the pond, trying to blend in with the reeds and cattails. Slurp. Slurp. My knee-high rubber boots have never moved through the muddy pond bottom so fast. I look over my shoulder and stand still. Bison have notoriously bad eyesight, so my lack of motion should cause her to lose interest. She stands on the hill and looks in my direction for what seems like hours, but in reality, was only minutes. Long minutes. Then, shaking her head, she turns and moves back over the hill.

My legs are wobbly as I retrace my path back to my car. One of the reasons I love chasing dragonflies is the encounters with other creatures I see along the way. Birds. Butterflies. Blue dasher dragonflies.

Female Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis), Belmont Prairie, Downers Grove, IL (2016).

This bison encounter, however, will hopefully be my last up-close-and-personal one. I’ll never call counting blue dasher dragonflies boring again.

Cindy Crosby is a volunteer dragonfly steward who coordinates two teams of about a dozen monitors each; one team at Nachusa Grasslands in Franklin Grove, IL, a Nature Conservancy site, and another at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. She is the author of  Chasing Dragonflies: A Natural, Cultural, and Personal History (Northwestern University Press), Tallgrass Conversations: In Search of the Prairie Spirit (Ice Cube Press) and  The Tallgrass Prairie: An Introduction (Northwestern University Press). Cindy coordinates the DSA “Species of the Month” blog and loves to garden, hike and bake. She is also a prairie steward who blogs each week about dragonflies, prairie, and gardening at “Tuesdays in the Tallgrass at Wordpress.” Her natural history classes and programs are found at www.cindycrosby.com.

Species of the Month

April Species of the Month: Exclamation Damsel (Zoniagrion exclamationis)

Exclamation Damsel (Zoniagrion exclamationis) Sebastopol, Sonoma County, California. Photo by Dave Biggs (2014)

Our April DSA species of the month is the Exclamation Damsel (Zoniagrion exclamationis) in the family Coenagrionidae. Size-wise, its length is 33-35 mm (just under one-and-a-half inches). It is also the lone species in the genus Zoniagrion. The damselfly is a California endemic with two blue exclamation marks on top of the thorax and jaunty blue eyespots. Males have dark abdomens with blue on S7-9, while females only have blue on S8-9. Exclamation Damsels breed in mud-lined creeks, and may be found in wooded streams. Join dragonfly chaser Kathy Biggs as she tells about her encounter with this species, and how it changed how dragonfly chasers learn about it today.

How the Exclamation Damsel Got Its Common Name

Back in the very early days of dragonflies, species only had scientific names. In November of 1996, the Dragonfly Society of the Americas naming committee came up with English common names that the membership could vote on. One of those common names kept me from making my very first Odonata identification. But then I, very much a newbie, helped give a common name to a species.

I live just an hour north of San Francisco and about 12 miles from the Pacific Coast. In 1996, I studied the dragonflies at my newly created wildlife pond. By 1997, armed with the new list of common names, I decided to look for some odonates at a nearby park. 

The first day of looking for dragonflies, I found a Forktail-like damselfly (Ischnura) with blue on the thorax and a dark abdomen with a blue ‘tail’ that even to my beginner’s eyes looked quite a bit larger than the Forktails at my backyard pond. What could it be?

Female Exclamation Damsel (Zoniagrion exclamationis), Sonoma County, California. Photo by Jim Burns (June, 2018).

Looking at my list of California dragonflies, I found Dancers. Nope, couldn’t be a dancer, too much blue color.  Bluets? Nope, couldn’t be a bluet, too much blue on them also. Forktails? Too small. Then, there was the Sierra Damsel. Nope, I wasn’t in the Sierras. I was in a lowland area. 

I was baffled, what could it be?

Dennis Paulson had seen my pond list of dragonflies online and had sent me one gentle correction. My Powdered Dancer (Argia moesta) was more likely a mature female Western Forktail (Ischnura perparva), he told me. Aha! Dennis might be able to identify my unknown damsel! I contacted him, and he told me that it was the Sierra Damsel (Zoniagrion exclamationis).

I felt miffed! The common name had thrown me astray. I complained to Dennis about it. He then said something to the effect of I’m on the naming committee and this first year the committee will entertain any suggested changes. He encouraged we Californians to come up with a more suitable new common name. 

My husband Dave, Tim Manolis, Andy Rehn, and myself started thinking about names. We realized that to non-Californians, the name “Sierra” brought to mind our state. But to us, it meant high mountains. And this was not a mountain species.

Female Exclamation Damsel (Zoniagrion exclamationis), Sonoma County, California. Photo by Bob Berhstock. (1999)

As we searched for a likely name, it turned out that each name we chose was already taken. Shadow Damsel? Zoniagrion exclamationis likes dappled shade, but Shadow Damsel was already in use for Palaemnema domina. Other names just didn’t seem right. 

Finally, we realized that this damselfly has two blue exclamation marks atop its thorax. Its scientific name includes “exclamationis.” Why not name it the Exclamation Damsel? It was a mouthful, but we submitted it anyway. Then, we waited. The vote wasn’t unanimous, but the name “Exclamation Damsel” prevailed. I was so excited! 

Now, I can say I’ve had a role in naming a gorgeous damselfly.

Kathy Biggs, Sonoma County, California. Photo by Dave Biggs. (2000)

Our guest blogger for April is Kathy Biggs, who has been a nature lover all her life. When she built a wildlife pond in her Sebastopol, California backyard in 1996, dragonflies arrived and she found her true passion. Wanting to share her passion, she developed websites for her wildlife ponds, California Dragonflies, Southwest Dragonflies and most recently A First Guide to the Dragonflies of Jalisco. The websites matured and grew into Kathy's becoming the author of California’s first Dragonfly Guide, Common Dragonflies of California, the Southwest’s first dragonfly guide, Common Dragonflies of Southwest, a dragonfly color and learn book and her latest publication, Dragonflies of the Greater Southwest. Kathy manages the Groups CalOdes and Building Ponds for Wildlife.  Kathy is the vetter for California on Odonata Central, and iNaturalist California and Jalisco, MX. She hopes she can inspire you to get to know the dragonflies and the wetlands that support them.