(no subject)
We saw this today by the river in Chattanooga, Tennessee. What is it???
Tammy Miller

Hi Tammy,
This is truly an awesome photograph of Dragonfly Metamorphosis. The nymph or naiad, the immature Dragonfly lives underwater. When it is ready to become an adult, it climbs onto the ground, usually on a twig or branch, and splits its skin. The winged adult emerges and after its wings have expanded and hardened, it flies away.

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Another Dragonfly
Hi,
Can you help identify this Dragonfly?
Christian

Hi Christian,
This is a female Twelve Spot Skimmer, Libellula pulchella. The male has whitish areas between spots and the females wings are clear between spots. It ranges over most of the U.S. and often rests on lily pads and vegetation overhanging the water.

Update (01/29/2006)
odonata
Hi, my name is Larry Hamrin. While researching dragonflies, I came across your site. I don’t consider myself an expert at identifying dragonflies, but I would like to comment on some of the dragonflies on your website. There is a dragonfly you identify as a 12 spotted skimmer. This does not look like any 12 spot I’ve ever seen, or can find on other websites. The amber coloration and spot pattern at the base of the wings are not consistent with other photos I’ve seen. Don’t know what it is but here is one I photographed. The female 12 spot and the female common whitetail are often confused.
Thank you for your time
Larry Hamrin

Correction: Sat, Feb 21, 2009 at 3:23 AM
Good morning,
If I may, as Larry pointed it, 12 spotted skimmer doesnt have amber patches on the wings.
This one is a Painted Skimmer (Libellula semifasciata).
I hope this helps,
Renaud, Switzerland

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Dragonfly pictures
Hi!
I just got a new camera and have been taking all kinds of pictures (especially of dragonflies…MY FAVORITE!) Is there anything interesting you can tell me about any of these dragonflies? I love your website, by the way!
Jaime

Blue Dasher	Green Clearwing

Hi Jaime,
Your photos are great. I see you are mastering that new camera. We have identified two of your dragonflies. One is a Green Darner, Anax junius, also known as the Snake Doctor or Darning Needle. It is one of the fastest and biggest of the common dragonflies. The thorax is green and abdomen blue or sometimes gray. The compound eyes are often the color of milk chocolate. The Green Clearwing, Erythemis simplicicollis, has a bright green face and thorax with a green abdomen spotted with brown. It frequently rests on bare earth as your photo proves. We will try to identify your other dragonflies when time allows. Though we do not own this book, we have others in the series and can highly recommend it: Dragonflies Through Binoculars: A Field Guide to Dragonflies of North America (Butterflies and Others Through Binoculars Field Guide Series) by Sidney W. Dunkle

Update (01/29/2006)
odonata
Hi, my name is Larry Hamrin. While researching dragonflies, I came across your site. I don’t consider myself an expert at identifying dragonflies, but I would like to comment on some of the dragonflies on your website. The dragonfly you identify as a green darner looks like an immature Blue Dasher. By immature I mean a dragonfly after it has emerged but before it has aquired its fully adult coloration. Actually a freshly emerged dragonfly is refered to as ” teneral”, so it’s really between teneral and fully matured Here is a website with a blue dasher where the dragonfly is refered to as immature. The male will have a coloration somewhat like a female at first, then change to its normal color as it gets older.
Thank you for your time
Larry Hamrin

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Common skimmer?
Hi folks,
Just found your wonderful site today whilst searching for an identification of a bug my mother took a picture of. She called it a "butterfly" much to my amusement, but upon searching the net, I have been able to identify it as some kind of skimmer, but I haven’t been able to find that much info on this family of dragonfly. Can you help us out? I live in Southwestern BC.
Thanks very much!
Shannon

Hi Shannon,
Your dragonfly looks like a female White Tail, Plathemis lydia. The male has a gleaming white abdomen, but the female’s is brown with rows of yellow spots. The wings of both have broad dark band near the tip and a small black area at the base. It ranges from Nova Scotia to Florida and west to California , and north to British Columbia.

Update (01/29/2006)
odonata
Hi, my name is Larry Hamrin. While researching dragonflies, I came across your site. I don’t consider myself an expert at identifying dragonflies, but I would like to comment on some of the dragonflies on your website. The dragonfly you identify as a female common whitetail looks to me to be a young male without the purinose coating. I identified as a male based on wing pattern. The male has a white tail because of a waxy like coating it aquires with age. The coating covers the markings on the abdomen. An immature white tail would not have this coating. Here is a website that shows an immature white tail. This is a phtograph of a female Common White Tail.
Thank you for your time
Larry Hamrin

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