Species of the Month

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) female, Silver Falls Rest Area, Texas, USA (6-22-2021) Copyright Danielle Husband.

DSA Species of the Month for January: Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa)

DSA’s January “Species of the Month” is the Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) in the family Libellulidae, the king skimmer dragonflies. The Widow Skimmer is 42–50 mm in length (approximately 1.7–2 inches) and is found across most of North America except the Rocky Mountain region in the United States, through Mexico, and in four Canadian provinces. Find out how this species became a favorite subject for biologist and DSA webmaster Danielle Husband in our first DSA blog post for 2025.

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“I’m Ready For My Closeup, Ms. Husband!”

My world changed when I received my first digital camera as a tween. As a budding naturalist, I took to the great outdoors. To me, North Florida nature was the best. There were always lizards, birds, flowers, alligators, and more to see. Even right in my backyard! I documented “life in the backyard“ just like I saw photographers and videographers do on a bigger scale in National Geographic or on Animal Planet.

Fast forward two decades and I am a camera owner again (shout out to the DSA Odonate Research Grant Program). During my master’s degree research, I amassed a library of odonate images at different wetland sites in the Texas Panhandle. These voucher photos served as visual evidence of species presence at a site. However, taking a clear image of each species observed was a real challenge. The life of an adult dragonfly is a quick one; it makes sense that they’d be on the move. Many individuals make you work for the photo. If I was fortunate, I snapped a few pictures either by frantically running around or crouching low before the individual made a quick exit. Some days you need a win. Luckily one special dragonfly was ready for its closeup. The Widow Skimmer.

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) male, Tahoka Lake, Texas, USA (6-12-2021) Copyright Danielle Husband.

The Widow Skimmer earned the “widow” name for its dark brown wing bands on either side of the thorax, which are said to resemble a draped mourning cloth. Males have a showy white band near the center of their wings and abdomens that become more “pruinose” or whitish with age. Females lack the white wing band and feature yellow stripes on each side of their abdomens.

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) female, Silver Falls Rest Area, Texas, USA (6-22-2021) Copyright Danielle Husband.

Widow Skimmers perched when other dragonflies I observed rarely did. I’d find them resting on reeds or blades of grass. They were quick to rise above the vegetation, catch an insect or chase off another dragonfly, and then land again.

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) male in flight, Elm Park, Lubbock, Texas, USA (6-19-2021) Copyright Danielle Husband.

It was hard not to ignore them at each site. On a sunny summer day, males appear to glow in the summer sun. The female’s abdominal stripes stood out with golden flair.

Two Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) males, Silver Falls Rest Area, Crosby County, Texas, USA (6-22-2021) Copyright Danielle Husband.

A common perching odonate is the perfect beginner photographer’s subject. Take note of what odonate is saying, “I’m ready for my closeup” around you. Who knows? The Widow Skimmer might be exactly what you need to kick off your odonate photography journey. 

*****

Danielle Husband is responsible for the care and feeding of the DSA website. She works as a wildlife biologist in Washington State and is a Texas Tech McIntyre Lab alumna. Contact her at webmaster@dragonflysocietyamericas.org with questions or DSA website recommendations. 

*Measurements are from Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East by Dennis Paulson, Princeton University Press (2011)

Species of the Month

Ebony Jewelwings (Calopteryx maculata) in the wheel, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Ilinois. (6-9-2017) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

DSA Species of the Month for December

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata)

DSA’s December  “Species of the Month” is the Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata) in the family Calopterygidae, the broad-winged damselflies, sometimes called jewelwings. Dennis Paulson, in Dragonflies and Damselflies of North America, tells us the Ebony Jewelwing is unique in that “no other North American damselfly is metallic green with black wings.” Its large size alone (39-57 mm or 1.5-2.25 inches) is distinctive, he says. The Ebony Jewelwing is found through most of the eastern half of the United States, into Canada, along wooded streams and sometimes away from streams. Find out how this species ignited a passion for dragonflies for writer Cindy Crosby in our final DSA blog post for 2024.

A Sense of Wonder

It began with Ebony Jewelwings.

After a difficult move decades ago, I spent almost every evening walking at an arboretum a few miles down the road from our new home in the Chicago region. I would stop on a bridge over Willoway Brook which ran through a  tallgrass prairie, sit, and write in my journal. As I wrote, the life of the prairie unfolded around me and my difficulties didn’t seem as arduous.  Muskrats swam down the waterway, carrying leafy vegetation to some unknown destination. Occasionally a coyote observed me from the clumps of big bluestem and switchgrass, then silently disappeared.  Nature is always a great solace.

Bridge over Willoway Brook, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Illinois. (9-6-20) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

And then, there were the damselflies.

At first as I watched the stream,  I thought they were butterflies. Jet-black butterflies. Granted, that’s not too observant and no credit to myself, but at the time I was more concerned with writing in my journal than with insect identification.  After a closer look, it was easy to see I was wrong. These were some other kind of insect. At the time, I knew pretty much zip about Odonata, so it took some sleuthing to discover they were damselflies. Ebony Jewelwing—Calopteryx maculata—damselflies to be precise.

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, Illinois. (6-30-22) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

Paulson, in his superb guide Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East, tells us that “no other North American damselfly is metallic green with black wings.” Watching these dusky damselflies flutter across Willoway Brook before sunset was a spark that ignited a two decades long passion in me for all things Odonata. Today, I know that Ebony Jewelwings are numerous and common in  Illinois. But at the time—to someone who knew little about the insect world— they seemed rare. Unique. Because they were new to me. And they were something I’d never paid attention to before.

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata) and American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Illinois. (6-13-21) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

As a dragonfly monitor years later (yes! I caught the “bug”), I turned through the pages of my field guides, trying to go beyond a simple identification to understand more about their life cycle and habits. Ed Lam writes in his excellent guide  Damselflies of the Northeast that this species prefers “shaded forest streams” but is found at a variety of running waters (which includes my prairie waterways).  Paulson notes their  “night roosts may be communal, deep in tall grass” noting that they also roost in trees. I’ve still never seen them settling in after sundown. Think of all those jet-black wings fluttering in the dark!

Their iridescent emerald bodies change color in the sun—sometimes green, sometimes sapphire, sometimes a bit gold, sometimes almost ashy. The females have a white pseudostigma on the wings, which looks like a dot of Wite-Out. Be cautioned: You have to be a member of the typewriter age to know what Wite-Out  is — some of my younger students give me blank looks when I describe the damselfly this way.

Female Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (6-14-2017) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

Today, I still have trouble distinguishing the female Ebony Jewelwings from the female River Jewelwings at one of the streams I monitor where they overlap. Robert DuBois, in his stellar field guide Damselflies of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, tells me the Ebony Jewelwing female’s wings are broader and darker than the River Jewelwing female’s, and the pseudostigma is wider.

Male Ebony Jewelwings (Calopteryx maculata) and male River Jewelwing (Calopteryx  aequabilis), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL (6-30-2022) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

But when I’m balancing my camera, net, and clipboard, trying to distinguish the difference while standing mid-stream in waders, I’m not always confident. Like all else with Odonata, I believe if I practice paying attention to them long enough, the differences will be easier to detect. Or at least, practice will make me more proficient than I am now.

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (6-14-21) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

Females may oviposit into submerged logs or vegetation, but can also submerge underwater. The first time I read about this, I was stunned. Adult damselflies going under the water’s surface? I had no idea! I later learned from several sources that the River Jewelwing females may submerge to oviposit as well. What a wonder! The jewelwings live such short lives as adults—usually less than a month— it seems only honorable and just that we should admire them while they are aloft along the streams.

Ebony Jewelwings (Calpteryx maculata) in the wheel, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (6-9-2017) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

Now, more than two decades after sitting on that bridge, journaling—and as a natural history instructor and someone who works with Odonata as a citizen scientist— I’ve never lost my love for the Ebony Jewelwing. Are they common? Absolutely. But they are no less charming for that. I’ll always be captivated by the flash of black wings in motion on the edges of a stream. Ebony Jewelwings will always kindle a sense of wonder in me.

****

Cindy Crosby is the author of Chasing Dragonflies: A Natural, Cultural, and Personal History (Northwestern University Press, 2020) as well as other books about the natural world. She helps coordinate the efforts of dragonfly monitors on two Illinois sites, and regularly teaches and speaks on the joys of Odonata. Dragonflies regularly make appearances in her weekly blog, Tuesdays in the Tallgrass (at Wordpress). Contact Cindy or find out more about her work at www.cindycrosby.com.

Species of the Month

Common Green Darner (Anax junius), Black River State Park, Jackson County, Wisconsin. (2017) Copyright Ken Tennessen.

November Species of the Month: Common Green Darner (Anax junius)

DSA’s November “Species of the Month” is the Common Green Darner (Anax junius) in the family Aeshnidae. It is a migratory species, 68-78 mm in length (about two and a half to three inches), and is found throughout most of the United States north into Canada and south into Mexico and Central America, as well as many other parts of the world. Its preferred habitat is lakes, ponds, or small streams but the Common Green Darner can be seen almost anywhere. Join Ode expert Ken Tennessen as he recounts an unusual experience with this migratory species.

Ode To An Unusual Feast

A frenzy of Anax junius (Common Green Darners) bedazzled my hometown of Wautoma in Waushara County, Wisconsin. They appeared along east Mt. Morris Street (lat/long 44.0757, -89.2873)) in the late afternoon of September 20, 2024. I first noticed them a little after 6 p.m., but there were already lots of them, so the activity had started before that. 

Common Green Darner (Anax junius), Sandhill Wildlife Management Area, Wood County, Wisconsin. (2006) Copyright Ken Tennessen.

With no way to count them, I estimated that hundreds were zipping about, flying fast and low, for several blocks as far as I could see. Temperature was 78 degrees Fahrenheit and relative humidity was 53 percent.

Common Green Darner (Anax junius), The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Illinois. (9-5-20) Copyright Cindy Crosby

Silhouetted against the sun, I could see a variety of small insects flying above the lawns, but I think the Common Green Darners were concentrating on the winged ants that must have been dispersing from some gallery in the neighborhood. I soon deduced that the dragonflies must be eating just the abdomens of the ants, as I found dozens of partial bodies on the sidewalk. Only the head, thorax, and wings remained. The mutilated ants were still alive and crawling frantically but with the abdomen missing (Fig. 1) they could no longer fly.

Remains of citronella ants (Lasius sp.) found crawling on the sidewalk without their abdomens, after being attacked by Anax junius; Wautoma, Wisconsin. (9-20-24) Copyright Ken Tennessen.

P.J. Liesch of the Insect Diagnostic Lab at the University of Wisconsin confirmed the prey to be citronella ants in the genus Lasius. I found one report of adult Anax junius feeding on ants, by Warren (1915), who studied this species feeding in Hawaii; however, he did not identify any specific type of ant. My observations may constitute the first specific report of dragonflies feeding on citronella ants. Lasius belongs to the subfamily Formicinae (Boudinot et al. 2022), so apparently they produce formic acid. How much acid these ants produce is questionable, but it appears it did not deter the dragonflies from ingesting them. Formic acid is produced in the gaster (abdomen). So, that is what the “CGDs” were eating!

Common Green Darner (Anax junius), The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Illinois. (7-9-21) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

Easy to recognize, the Common Green Darner has a distinctive black "bulls eye" mark on its head, in front of the huge eyes. Males have a green thorax but are largely blue on the abdomen, whereas females are green and rusty brown. The female often oviposits in tandem with the male but also lays eggs alone.

Common Green Darners (Anax junius), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, Illinois. (6-9-24) Copyright Cindy Crosby.

This species is known to migrate long distances, feeding voraciously on other insects, storing fat and protein. They show up in Wisconsin in early spring when it is still quite cold and before the resident population emerges. Our spring migrants come from points far south; in the fall, the next generation heads south. Much has yet to be learned about their migratory routes and life history traits.

Around 6:30 p.m., with the sun near the horizon, the number of Common Green Darners decreased abruptly, and shortly afterwards I saw only a few individuals. They left me with questions. Where did  they go? Will they show up again tomorrow? If not, where are they going? How did they form the swarm and find the winged ants? 

The only answer I can offer is, no, they did not show up the next day.

References

• Boudinot, B. E., M. L. Borowiec, and M. M. Prebus. 2022. Phylogeny, evolution, and classification of the ant genus Lasius, the tribe Lasiini and the subfamily Formicinae (Hymenoptera: Formididae). Systematic Entomology 47: 113–151.

• Warren, A. 1915. A study of the food habits of the Hawaiian dragonflies. Bulletin, College Hawaii Publications 3: 4–45.

• May, M. L., J. H. Matthews. 2008. Migration in Odonata: A case study of Anax junius. Pp 63–77 in Cordoba-Aguilar, A., (ed.) Dragonflies, model organisms for ecological and evolutionary research. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

More Migration Information

• May, M. 2013. A critical overview of progress in studies of migration of dragonflies (Odonata: Anisoptera), with emphasis on North America. Journal of Insect Conservation 17:1–15.

• C. Scott Clem and Joseph V. McHugh "Documentation of Diurnal and Nocturnal Migratory Activity of the Dragonfly Anax junius (Odonata: Aeshnidae) on Sapelo Island, Georgia, USA," Southeastern Naturalist 23(3), N54-N57, (7 October 2024). https://doi.org/10.1656/058.023.0316

• Russell, R. W., M. L. May, K. L. Soltesz, J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1998. Massive swarm migrations of dragonflies (Odonata) in Eastern North America. American Midland Naturalist 140:325–342.

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Ken Tennessen has studied dragonflies for over 50 years, publishing papers and books on their systematics, phylogeny, life cycle, behavior and conservation. A major work, Dragonfly Nymphs of North America, was published by Springer Nature in 2019. He has written numerous articles for DSA newsletters and has published over 80 technical papers in technical journals, including naming 22 new species of Odonata; four New World species are named for him. Email: tenkenneth43@gmail.com

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Editor’s note: This essay appeared in slightly different form first in Wisconsin Dragonfly Society’s Ode Notes September 2024. Introductory information is from Dennis Paulson’s Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East and Dragonflies and Damselflies of the West and other sources.

Species of the Month

October DSA Species of the Month: Striped Meadowhawk (Sympetrum pallipes)

Striped Meadowhawk (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

DSA Species of the Month for October 2024

October’s DSA species focus is the Striped Meadowhawk (Sympetrum pallipes), a common and widespread species in western North America. Averaging 36 mm (1.4 inches) in length, males are red and females brown or red like most meadowhawk species, but both sexes can be recognized by their prominent pale thoracic stripes. Follow odonate expert Dennis Paulson as he recounts his surprising encounter this autumn with these fascinating dragonflies.

Look and Ye Shall Find

Sometimes, you are fortunate when looking for odonates. This was the case in September, when my wife, Netta Smith, and I found these Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes).

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

The species name pallipes (pale-footed) is appropriate over much of the range, but not the wet Pacific Northwest, where the legs are black. Emerging in June and July, they fly as late as November in many areas. But they are locally distributed because of their habitat needs.

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

They are among the relatively few species of Odonata that breed in seasonal wetlands--they lay their eggs on land!

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

They breed in fall, when shallow ponds have dried up, and while in flight drop their eggs one by one into the herbaceous vegetation filling the dry basin. You can see their tiny white eggs being dropped in some of the following photos.

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

The eggs are dormant until spring, well after the pond has filled during winter rains. They then hatch and the nymphs grow rapidly to full size. The adults emerge from the water in early summer.  As soon as they mature sexually, they return to the now dry ponds and mate and oviposit.

 Just by luck on September 6, 2024, we found one of these dried-up but heavily vegetated pond basins at the edge of Cranberry Beach Road in Grayland, Washington. As one drives out this road, heavy low forest gives way to sand plains covered with herbaceous vegetation well back from the ocean beach. Parallel to the beach, there are depressions deep enough to hold water for part of the year. And there were the meadowhawks! I took more than 200 photos in 10 minutes at midday.

 The last photo (below) shows a female that might have been resting after a session of vigorous oviposition.

Striped Meadowhawks (Sympetrum pallipes), Cranberry Beach Road, Grayland, Washington; 9-6-24 (Photo copyright Dennis Paulson)

Sometimes, when looking for dragonflies, you find something wonderful! This was definitely one of those days.

***

Dennis Paulson is a biologist and a naturalist who grew up in Miami, exposed to subtropical nature in all its glory while southern Florida was still largely unspoiled. He received his Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Miami in 1966 with a study of the dragonflies of southern Florida, and shortly thereafter he moved to Seattle, where he has lived ever since. He recently retired after 15 years of being the Director of the Slater Museum of Natural History at the University of Puget Sound, where he also taught in the Biology Department. He has also led nature tours and traveled to all continents.

Paulson has published over 75 scientific papers on his favorite animals, and his contributions to natural history include these books: Shorebirds of the Pacific Northwest; Shorebirds of North America: The Photographic Guide; Exotic Birds; Alaska: The Ecotraveller’s Wildlife Guide; Dragonflies and Damselflies of the West;, Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East; Dragonflies and Damselflies: A Natural History; ABA Field Guide to the Birds of Washington; and Dragonflies and Damselflies of Costa Rica.

Species of the Month

DSA Species of the Month for September: Philogenia martae

Philogenia martae (Male), Tatamá National Park, Colombia, 8-4-23. Copyright Dan Osipov.

DSA’s “Species of the Month” for September is the damselfly  Philogenia martae. It is in the Flatwing Family (Philogeniidae) and was newly described around 2017. Measuring about six centimeters (about 2.36 inches) long, this damselfly is endemic to the Western Colombian Andes mountain range in the Republic of Colombia in South America. Read on as photographer and dragonfly chaser Dan Osipov shares his experiences with this elusive species.

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The Best “Bug Shot” of All

It had been abnormally dry in 2023, and the unassuming stream by the side of the road seemed like it could have been runoff from the rains. I was hiking the road cutting through the Tatamá National Park in Colombia in late July and August of 2023, the location of the 2022 Dragonfly Society of the America’s meeting. Now, the following year, I was there with a group of photographers for a “BugShot” tour. The forest was full of unique planthoppers, fancy beetles, and flamboyant butterflies. But my eyes were on dragonflies and damselflies.

Philogenia martae (Male), Tatamá National Park, Colombia, 8-4-23. Copyright Dan Osipov.jpg

There are more than one hundred unique species of odonates that reside in Tatamá National Park, making it a top biodiversity spot in the region. Some of the odonates there, including Philogenia martae, are endemic to the Western Cordillera region, and haven’t been found anywhere else on earth.

Philogenia martae (Male), Tatamá National Park, Colombia, 8-4-23. Copyright Dan Osipov.

The road I hiked ran from the park entrance to a military installation on top of the mountain. There were few other access points into the forest.  Each day, the dragonflies were most active when the sun shone from mid-morning until early afternoon. Once the clouds rolled in in the afternoon, they would settle high up in the trees or in deep vegetation. This made them much harder to spot.

It was near that unassuming stream that a pair of damselflies—Philogenia martae—were hanging out. I discovered a male P.martae on a branch early in the afternoon on my hike. I froze for a moment with surprise! 

Philogenia martae (Male), Tatamá National Park, Colombia, 8-4-23. Copyright Dan Osipov.jpg

At six centimeters (2.3 inches) in length, P. martae could rival some dragonfly darners in size, yet this damselfly’s slender constitution blended well with the surrounding vegetation. Once I found it, the damselfly posed for a few photos and videos. The next day I found a female sitting in the same spot, but she wasn’t as cooperative, flying up high as I approached.

Philogenia martae (Female), Tatamá National Park, Colombia, 8-5-23. Copyright Dan Osipov.

There are a number of other species of Philogenia (Flatwings) across Central and South America. The damselfly P. martae was described relatively recently in 2017, and is endemic to the Western Colombian Andes mountain range.  Its yellow face has been anthropomorphized as a smile.

Philogenia martae (Male), Tatamá National Park, Colombia, 8-4-23. (Enhanced) Copyright Dan Osipov.jpg

It has been a great privilege to observe this species in the wild.  And yes—-it made me smile to find it!

*****

Dan Osipov has been chasing dragonflies and damselflies since early childhood; first with a net, and more recently with a camera. He currently resides in the Bay Area of California. You can find him on Instagram or Threads. Danwould like to thank Juliana Sandoval, Kendra and John Abbott, Clay Bolt, Thomas Shahan, Cornelio Bota, as well as all the staff at the Montezuma Rainforest Ecolodge for making his experience with this damselfly possible.

Species of the Month

 August’s Featured Species: Laura’s Clubtail (Stylurus laurae)

Focus stacked image, Laura's Clubtail (Stylurus laurae) male, first sighting, 8-18-2023 Killbuck, Ohio, USA (Photo copyright Jay G. Heiser).

This month’s DSA species focus is Laura’s Clubtail (Stylurus laurae). Laura’s Clubtail is in the family Gomphidae, and is found from Northeastern Texas to the southernmost part of Ontario. It is between two and a quarter and two and three quarters inches long (54-64 cm), and in its northern range flies from July to August (longer in the south). Read on to hear about our August guest blogger Jay Heiser’s ongoing relationship with the species.

An Ohio Surprise

Late one afternoon on August 1, 2018, I was out walking on my property when I noticed something new perched on the side of the creek.  It was on some low vegetation just upstream from the township road bridge. With my longest camera lens, I could just barely get an identifiable photo of the strongly backlit dragonfly. Laura’s Clubtail (Stylurus laurae) !

Laura's Clubtail (Stylurus laurae), first sighting, 8-1-2018 Killbuck, Ohio, USA (Photo copyright Jay G. Heiser).

 I’d only been systematically observing Odonata for a couple of months and I wasn’t prepared for the minor excitement that ensued online when this turned out to be one of Ohio’s lesser seen species. I returned multiple times, and had sightings on the fourth and the 28th. The tattered wings and the consistency of location suggested that it may have been the same individual.

Although I didn’t find Laura's Clubtail in 2019, in the following four years, I was able to observe much of their adult life cycle. I saw and photographed a recently emerged teneral, flying up out of the creek bed and temporarily posing for a photo before leaving for a couple weeks.

Teneral Laura's Clubtail (Stylurus laurae) emerging from stream, 7-14-2021, Killbuck, Ohio, USA (Photo copyright Jay G. Heiser).

 I’ve witnessed males fighting over territory, and I’ve had females whiz around my Muck Boots as they deposited eggs.

Female Laura's Clubtail (Stylurus laurae) resting before resuming egg depositing Laura's Clubtail, 7-18-2020, Killbuck, Ohio, USA (Photo copyright Jay G. Heiser).

I only had single sightings in 2022 and 2023, but the latter posed for me at eye level in some beautiful golden sunlight.   

Perched males often buzz their wings, complicating photography, but this last subject stayed so perfectly still that I was able to record a series of focus bracketed photos that very neatly stacked into a single vivid and sharp image.

Male Laura's Clubtail (Stylurus laurae), vibrating its wings, 8-20-20, Killbuck, Ohio, USA (Photo copyright Jay G. Heiser).

Our property is located at the northeastern corner of the unglaciated Appalachian Plateau.Flowing through three miles of active and abandoned agricultural land before reaching us, the water course that defines our place’s northern border is much straighter and deeper than it was before European settlement. Along most of our property, including the places where I’ve found Laura’s Clubtail, the creek is about twice as wide as the embankment is high. It is sunny, with sparse tree cover.

Big Run Creek, 9-2-23, Killbuck, Ohio, USA (Photo copyright Jay G. Heiser).

 Starting at the downstream corner of our property, the shallower-banked creek is allowed to meander through shady woods for another mile before joining a tributary of the Muskingum River. The banks are mud, but the stream bed is composed of sand, eroded from the Pennsylvanian age sandstone that comprises our bedrock.   It is usually wadable in boots.Over the past five seasons, I’ve spent hours trudging up and down our 200 meters of creek bed, and have managed 19 Laura’s Clubtail sightings. 

While I’ve had occasional sightings of many Odonata species within or above the creek, it’s the Ebony Jewelwings (Calopteryx maculata), Variable Dancers (Argia fumipennis), Stream Bluets (Enallagma exsulans), and Ashy Clubtails (Phanogomphus lividus) that have regularly exhibited breeding activity within this habitat. The presence of species such as Least Brook Lampreys (Lampetra aepyptera) and Mudpuppy Salamanders (Necturus maculosus) suggests that in spite of agriculture, the water quality is relatively high.

Sightings peaked at seven in 2020 and have declined since then. It’s tempting to draw some conclusions about our local population, but with such a small set of observations, bias is likely. The species has historically been seen in six Ohio counties, most recently in two or three, and it is reasonable to expect that more breeding populations exist.

Confirmed Ohio Sightings of Laura's Clubtail (Stylurus laurae) January, 2024. Used with permission from the Ohio Odonata Society.

I believe that several factors could explain the relatively low rate of sightings. First, this is a species that spends very little of its adult life in places that are convenient for human observation. Emerging tenerals head up into the tree tops and are only rarely seen away from water.  

Second, they have very specific habitat requirements. Laura’s Clubtail,  only breeds in creeks and small rivers with clear water and sandy or rocky bottoms, within or close to heavily wooded areas. It’s challenging to observe odonates in some of these locations, and in Ohio, many of these water courses may not be publicly accessible.

Although the overall level of Odonata observation within Ohio has significantly increased since the launch of a new survey in 2016, mine is the only new location to be identified. I hope there are other breeding populations in Ohio and nearby states. Presumably, those locations—if they exist—are not subject to high levels of attention from those actively looking for Odonata and publicly recording their sightings.  

Much of Ohio has been "rewilding", which has been a boon for many species, but evidence suggests that this species doesn’t travel very far, inhibiting its ability to recolonize what may have been previous breeding areas. Confronted with significant habitat change and increasing climate change, this species’ sustainability in Ohio— and indeed in its entire range—remains an unanswered question.

 A pair of conservation organizations are planning to restore a channelized creek less than two miles away (as the dragonfly flies). I’ve been working to determine which odonate species are currently in the several hundred acres of associated property, much of which is also slated for some restoration. Who knows what species might choose to recolonize it?  Perhaps it would be a useful place to experiment with Stylurus relocation. In the meantime, my plan is to continue monitoring the creek in my own backyard, while encouraging other people to identify and explore new locations. 

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Jay Heiser recently retired as an IT Analyst at Gartner, where he was responsible for Cybesecurity research. He is the webmaster for the Ohio Odonata Society (www.ohioodonatasociety.org, and can be reached at jay@heiserhollow.net. 

Species of the Month

July’s Featured Species: Calico Pennant (Celithemis elisa)

Male calico pennant (Celithemis elisa), Holland, OH. 7-5-2019 (Photo copyright Kim Smith).

The Dragonfly Society of the Americas July “Species of the Month”  is the Calico Pennant (Celithemis elisa). It is in the family Libellulidae, commonly known as the skimmers, or perchers.  It is a small skimmer,  29-34 mm in length (just over an inch to under an inch-and-a-half long), and is often found in ponds and lakes in the United States in a range that includes the East, Northeast (to Southeastern Canada), Southeast, Midwest, and West to Nebraska, Texas, and Oklahoma, according to Dennis Paulson in Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East. Enjoy hearing more about this species as you follow monitor Kim Smith on her adventures in Ohio.

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The Love Dragons of North America

Calico Pennants are small skimmers (Libellulidae), the family with the most species among the Anisoptera, and a very common species in my area. Their usual habitats are ponds with calm water and lots of vegetation around the edges. Coincidentally, I favor those types of habitats as well and am well-acquainted with these charismatic little odonates.

Wiregrass Lake, Holland, OH. 9-15-2020 (Photo Copyright Kim Smith).

One of the first places I saw this species was a local Ohio metropark that consists primarily of a five-acre man-made pond used for fishing and kayaking. The pond edge is heavily vegetated with shrubs and forbs, surrounded by a wide grassy walking path around the lake. Outside the trail are a variety of woods and meadows. The park opened to the public in 2015, two years before I moved to this region, so I was never able to see it prior to then. A friend had access to the property to do unofficial surveys before it was opened to the public, and he tells me that he often saw mass emergence of calico pennants consisting of well over a thousand individuals.

Calico pennant (Celithemis elisa) on equisetum, Holland, OH. 7-13-2020 (Photo copyright Kim Smith).

The common name “calico” comes from the mottled markings on their wings, similar to those on the coat of a calico cat. This species is sexually dimorphic, with red markings on mature males and yellow on females and immature males. However, they are highly variable, as seen in the photo of a female with red pterostigma. I’m also pleased when I find a male who is partway through the process of changing colors, as shown in this gorgeous individual.

Calico pennant (Celithemis elisa) immature male with partial color change, Holland, OH. 5-16-2021 (Photo copyright Kim Smith)

Years ago I began to call them “love dragons” because of the heart-shaped markings on the abdomen. And, with that already in my mind, it’s not a big leap to imagine their mating wheel as a heart as well.

Calico pennants (Celithemis elisa) in heart-shaped mating wheel. Holland, OH 7-5-2019- (Photo copyright Kim Smith).

Typical pennant hunting behavior is to perch on a plant and launch at flying insects who pass by. As far as I know, dragonflies don’t have associations with any particular plants as many other insects do. But occasionally I’ll find one that has chosen a flower as a hunting perch, and I’m always in search of those prime photo opportunities.

Calico Pennant (Celithemis elisa) male on fleabane, Holland, OH. 6-30-2018. (Photo copyright Kim Smith).

Although there were once mass emergences here, things seem to have changed since the park opened nine years ago. I was an Odonata monitoring volunteer there for three years, from 2019 to 2021. My high single-day count of calico pennants was 37 individuals, and that number hasn’t been surpassed since I turned over the monitoring duties to a new team in 2022. A population drop from more than a thousand to 37? It’s a concern.

Calico pennant (Celithemis elisa) Holland, OH. 8-31-2020. (Copyright Kim Smith).

 In recent years, there has been an increase in people racing remote-controlled boats and airplanes on and over the lake as well. But as far as determining the cause, your guess is as good as mine. Is it because they started stocking the lake with fish who may be eating the dragonfly larvae? Maybe. Is it a result of counting errors? I think this is doubtful in the case of such a huge change. Or is it just a natural fluctuation that happens over longer periods of time? I wish we knew the answers, but I’m glad that at least we’re keeping records now to better track population changes of all the Odonata that live here.

Calico pennant  (Celithemis elisa) on black-eyed susan, Monclova, OH 7-1-2021. (Photo copyright Kim Smith).

The idea of this beloved dragonfly species disappearing is too sad to contemplate. I hope the population can somehow rebound. In the meantime, I’ll continue to enjoy these beautiful love dragons whenever I can find them.

Our guest blogger for July 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. You can contact her at Kim@NatureIsMyTherapy.com.

Species of the Month

June’s Featured Species: Desert Shadowdamsel (Palaemnema domina)

S17177 Desert Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema domina, male. Bonita Creek, Graham Co., Arizona; 1 August 2007; Dennis Paulson photo.

This month’s DSA species’ focus is the Desert Shadowdamsel (Palaemnema domina). It is in the Platystictidae, the shadowdamsel family. This moderate-sized slender damselfly is 35-44 cm (1.3-1.7 inches) long and is found at small, clear rocky streams bordered by dense vegetation. It is found in southeastern Arizona, south through Mexico to Nicaragua. Follow Dennis Paulson as he reflects on his experiences with this elusive species and other members of its genus.

Thriving in the Shadows

One of my favorite groups of odonates is the genus Palaemnema, 43 species of shadowdamsels in the family Platystictidae. The family is more diverse in the Old World, with 238 species in nine genera in southern Asia. All seem to be shade-lovers, the source of the common name for Palaemnema.

But we can thank the Belgian odonatologist Baron Edmond de Sélys-Longchamps for in 1860 coining the delightful generic name Palaemnema, which means “old memories.”

Perhaps because Philip Calvert, the first monographer of the genus, lived for a year in Costa Rica, it is well known there, with 11 described species, four of them endemic, and several still undescribed!

C43833 Nathalia Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema nathalia, male. Rio Corobici, Guanacaste Prov., Costa Rica; 7 July 2017; Dennis Paulson photo.

Mexico is home to eight species, four of them found nowhere else. Thirteen species are known from Colombia, and the genus occurs south to Peru and east to Venezuela, with one species extending farther east into the Guianas and northern Brazil.

E68255 Ink-tipped Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema paulirica, male. San Miguel de Matina, Limón Prov., Costa Rica; 18 October 2023;  Smith photo.

One of these basically tropical damselflies has even crossed the border and is known from a few streams in southeastern Arizona. That is Palaemnema domina, the Desert Shadowdamsel. My wife, Netta Smith, and I found this species in numbers at Bonita Creek in Graham County, but they didn't come easy. They perch and forage among dense tangles, such as the root masses of fallen cottonwoods, and we had to look carefully and thoroughly in such places.

DiP00727 Bonita Creek, Graham Co., AZ; 28 May 2019. Dennis Paulson photo.

Shadowdamsels really deserve their name, standing out in the order by not needing sunlight to carry on their activities. Of course, they aren't the only tropical odonates like that, but they are the only ones I have looked for while crawling through the underbrush on hands and knees near a promising stream. When collecting Palaemnema, you may have better luck snatching one off a leaf with your fingers than swinging a net through the foliage.

C17007 Desert Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema domina, female. Lower Eagle Creek, Greenlee Co., Arizona; 28 August 2015; Netta Smith photo.

Shadowdamsels are so elusive that we don't know much about their lives. They are all stream-dwellers, and they have very distinctive nymphs, somewhat termite-shaped. I don't think anyone has kept them in captivity, and I don't think we know what they eat, presumably small invertebrates. They have been found living among rocks and gravel.

(DP)1 Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema sp., nymph. Rincón de Osa, Puntarenas Prov., Costa Rica; 8 March 1967; Dennis Paulson photo.

We also know little about what the adults eat. With long leg spines and wings held above the abdomen, they may be salliers, flying out to capture small flying insects just as a dancer (Argia) or a flycatcher would. I have never seen one feeding.

Their reproductive behavior has some fascinating turns. Males come to the water much earlier than other damselflies, again apparently not needing the sun. Males on territory often open and close their wings, surely a sign to repel other males from their immediate vicinity. Fancifully, I wonder if it also attracts females.

(DP)4 Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema sp. (undescribed), male opening wings. Rincón de Osa, Puntarenas Prov., Costa Rica; 18 March 1967; Dennis Paulson photo.

Males have been seen in numbers together at a stream, in a situation much like the leks of some birds. Females would approach and be clasped by a male, then the two flying away to land in a tree for a very brief copulation.

(DP)4 Desert Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema domina, pair in tandem. La Palma, Nayarit, Mexico; 15 September 2001. Dennis Paulson photo.

After mating much like other damselflies, the female oviposits over or near the water, different species in different plants, both woody and herbaceous. The pair does not remain in tandem, but the male perches very close to the female as she lays her eggs, guarding her against other males. I have not seen this behavior in any other damselflies, and I wish I had had a grant to study platystictids all over the world.

(DP)6 Shadowdamsel, Palaemnema sp. (undescribed), male guarding ovipositing female. 10 mi N Varablanca, Alajuela Prov., Costa Rica; 24 June 1967; Dennis Paulson photo.

Next time you're near a tropical stream, check out the shadows. We have much to learn about these damsels!

Dennis Paulson is a biologist and a naturalist who grew up in Miami, exposed to subtropical nature in all its glory while southern Florida was still largely unspoiled. He received his Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Miami in 1966 with a study of the dragonflies of southern Florida, and shortly thereafter he moved to Seattle, where he has lived ever since. He recently retired after 15 years of being the Director of the Slater Museum of Natural History at the University of Puget Sound, where he also taught in the Biology Department. He has also led nature tours and traveled to all continents.

Paulson has published over 75 scientific papers on his favorite animals, and his contributions to natural history include these books: Shorebirds of the Pacific Northwest; Shorebirds of North America: The Photographic Guide; Exotic Birds; Alaska: The Ecotraveller’s Wildlife Guide; Dragonflies and Damselflies of the West;, Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East; Dragonflies and Damselflies: A Natural History; ABA Field Guide to the Birds of Washington; and Dragonflies and Damselflies of Costa Rica.