Ode to a Dragonfly:

Exploring the World of the Happy-face Dragonfly

Childhood Experience

This photo shows an example of the dragonfly I saw as a child—the Paddle-tailed Darner. It's a large insect, with beautiful colors. This was the first perched dragonfly I had seen, and I didn't see another one like it for decades.

The Happy-face Dragonfly

This is the first picture I took of a Happy-face Dragonfly.  When I blindly took the picture at Cranberry Lake on October 22, 2006, I had no idea its face looked like this – it wasn't until I got home and viewed the picture on the computer that I realized what I had discovered.  This picture is what really "hooked" me on dragonflies. Looking at this picture always makes me smile myself.

A Few Dragonflies and Damselflies From Cranberry Lake

Clockwise from upper left: Paddle-tailed Darner, Paddle-tailed Darner, Shadow Darner, Blue-eyed Darner.

Clockwise from upper left: Cardinal Meadowhawk, Autumn Meadowhawks mating while perched on my finger, Four-spotted Skimmer, Eight-spotted Skimmer.

Clockwise from upper left: Blue Dasher (male), Blue Dasher (female), Western Pondhawk (female), Western Pondhawk (male).

Damselflies, clockwise from upper left: Spotted Spreadwing, Tule Bluet, Northern Bluet, Pacific Forktail.

Dragonfly Whispering

If you lift up gently under a perched dragonfly it may come along for a ride on your finger. In fact, once perched on your finger, it doesn't want to let go until it decides to fly off. Here a Happy-face Dragonfly basks in the sun on my finger. This is my favorite "Dragonfly Whispering" picture.

Here's another shot of the Happy-face Dragonfly on my finger. It's amazing to have this insect looking up at you with that expression on its face—sometimes it's hard to believe it's real.

Common Green Darners in the wheel position during mating.

Here is a pair of Comm Green Darners, the official state insect of Washington, mating while perched on my finger. This is the largest insect in the state of Washington.

A young (teneral) male Western Pondhawk. This dragonfly will be brilliant blue when it matures. Females will retain their green coloration.

The pleasures of interacting with dragonflies.

A young girl on a field trip is delighted to hold a dragonfly that I transferred from my finger to her hand. When he finally flew off she kept her hand in this position and asked me, "Will he come back?" I told her "No, he has a lot of things to do today, so he probably won't be coming back this way." If I had said "Yes" I know she was prepared to wait for him.

Happy-face Darner (left) and Shadow Darner (right). These dragonflies are close cousins.

After whispering one dragonfly onto a finger it occurred to me that I might as well whisper another one onto another finger. The dragonflies were happy to come along for the ride.

Three dragonflies perched on my fingers. No need for a net to get a close look at dragonflies.

Here a Happy-face Dragonfly is perched on my finger, while at the same time some friendly, red Autumn Meadowhawks have come to perch on my wrist, shoulder, and hat.

My wife Betsy experiences a red dragonfly on the shoulder, and a second one on her hat.  Both dragonflies are male Autumn Meadowhawks, the friendliest dragonfly we know.

Autumn Meadowhawks are well described by a famous haiku:

Red dragonfly on my shoulder,

Calls me his friend.

Autumn has arrived.

I’ve often had them “on my shoulder,” but I've also had them covering my entire body – literally from head to toe.

A gathering of Autumn Meadowhawks at Cranberry Lake in Anacortes.

The ones pictured on my lower body are only half the story – they covered me from head to toe.

Splash-Dunk/Spin-Dry

An illustration of a typical splash-dunk/spin-dry sequence.

 

Frame grabs from a slow-motion video showing a dragonfly preparing for a splash-dunk (left), splashing (center), and taking off (right).

 

A dragonfly in mid spin-dry, surrounded by a halo of droplets.

Next is a video from Cranberry Lake showing a series of six splash-dunks, followed by a spin-dry that sheds a spray of water droplets.

A trailer for the Happy-face Dragonfly movie.

The Dragon Splash

A frame grab from a slow-motion video that shows a sequence of three splash-dunks. Splash-dunks #1 and #2 produced ripples that are spreading outward. Splash-dunk #3 has just occurred, resulting in a nice symmetric "dragon splash." The central spike results from the body of the dragonfly hitting the water, and the other two come from the wings.

The Vitruvian Dragonfly

The Happy-face Dragonfly is such a well proportioned animal that it occurred to me to give it the "Vitruvian Man" treatment.

Prospective Book Cover

Notable Dragonfly Facts

They have six legs, but don't walk.

The have incredible vision, but can't hear.

Some cultures fear them, others see them as signs of good luck and prosperity.

They are very successful today, but extend back in the fossil record to before the dinosaurs.

They don't bite or sting, but consume large quantities of flies and mosquitos.